Difference between revisions of "Emotional intelligence"

Latest revision as of 18:34, October 15, 2025

The five components of emotional intelligence are: self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy, and social skills.^[1]

Emotional intelligence (EI) "refers to the ability to perceive, control and evaluate emotions."^[2]

The five components of emotional intelligence are: self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy, and social skills.^[3]

Many businesses offer their employees seminars or courses on emotional intelligence in order to boost their employees effectively and to create more harmony in the workplace.

Raising emotional intelligence is a big part of character education, something liberals have sought to replace.

Developing greater emotional intelligence

A Venn diagram showing the relationship between self-concept, self-efficacy, and self-esteem.

See also: Self-awareness and Self-regulation and Self-control and Listening skills and Empathy and Interpersonal skills and Social intelligence and Mindfulness (Psychology) and Stress management and Peak performance and Sport psychology and Metacognition and Positive thinking and Optimism and Self-talk and Hope and Rational thinking and Critical thinking

"To increase emotional intelligence, focus on developing self-awareness by recognizing your own emotions, practicing active listening to understand others' feelings, cultivating empathy, managing your emotions through techniques like deep breathing, and seeking feedback on your emotional responses to situations; essentially, becoming more mindful of your own emotions and how they impact your interactions with others."^[4]

A study of information technology (IT) professionals found that with only two days of training, emotional intelligence scores increased by 7%.^[5]

Articles:

• Emotional Intelligence Skills: What They Are & How to Develop Them, Harvard Business School online
• How to Improve Your Emotional Intelligence, Harvard Division of Continuing Education
• How To Improve Emotional Intelligence in 9 Steps, Indeed
• How To Improve Emotional Intelligence, SimplePyschology.org
• How to Boost Your (and Others’) Emotional Intelligence, Harvard Business Review
• The right blend of IQ and EQ: Tips to keep improving
• 6 Tips for Improving Your Emotional Intelligence
• 7 Habits of Emotionally Intelligent People by Kendra Cherry, MSEd
• Emotional Regulation: 5 Evidence-Based Regulation Techniques by Susan McGarvie, Ph.D.
• How Active Listening Improves Emotional Intelligence
• How to have a very high degree of emotional intelligence, AI

Videos:

• Increasing emotional intelligence - Video playlist

Emotional intelligence and higher work productivity

Productivity is the ratio of output (goods and services) produced per unit of input (productive resources) over some period of time.

See also: Productivity and Positive thinking and Personal development and Sales training

According to Forbes magazine: "On top of being better team players, emotionally intelligent people tend to perform better. Bradberry discussed how 90% of top performers score highly for emotional intelligence. A study conducted at a Motorola manufacturing site found that employees were 93% more productive after undergoing stress management and EQ training. So why do emotionally intelligent employees perform better? There are several reasons."^[6]

According to the article 47 Emotional Intelligence Statistics & Facts:

HubSpot.com reports concerning salespersons and their moods:

Benefits of Emotional Intelligence

There are many advantages of having high emotional intelligence, such as self-awareness, empathy and social skills, it also makes people better leaders, and increases their emotional maturity. ^[10][11] It also boosts productivity, compassion, leadership skills and builds better relationships. ^[12]

Benefits of emotional intelligence

Emotional intelligence and achievement

See also: Emotional intelligence and achievement and Achievement and Achievement orientation and Self-regulation and Emotion and Empathy and Social intelligence and Interpersonal skills and Peak performance and Mental toughness and Psychological resilience and Antifragility and Comfort zone and Growth mindset and Motivation and Self-motivation and Decision making

"Research indicates a strong positive correlation between emotional intelligence (EI) and achievement, suggesting that individuals with high EI tend to perform better academically and professionally due to their ability to manage their emotions, understand others, and navigate challenging situations effectively, leading to increased motivation, resilience, and better decision-making skills."^[13]

As far as emotional intelligence and sales performance, according to HR.com: "Hay Group states one study of 44 Fortune 500 companies found that salespeople with high EQ produced twice the revenue of those with average or below average scores. In another study, technical programmers demonstrating the top 10 percent of emotional intelligence competency were developing software three times faster than those with lower competency."^[14] See: Emotional intelligence and achievement

Articles:

• IQ vs EQ for Career Success by Diane A. Safer, PhD, International Honor Society in Psychology
• Why Even Smart People Fail. Lack of achievement drive and emotional intelligence
• Lack of Emotional Intelligence and the Impact on Team Performance (5 Key Areas)

Journal articles:

• Emotional intelligence and academic performance: A systematic review and meta-analysis, Thinking Skills and Creativity. Volume 49, September 2023, 101355.
• Emotional Intelligence as Indicator for Effective Academic Achievement within the School Setting: A Comprehensive Conceptual Analysis, DOI:10.20944/preprints202310.2029.v2
• Emotional intelligence promotes optimal learning, engagement, and achievement: A mixed-methods study, Current Psychology 42(2). DOI:10.1007/s12144-021-02294-2

Emotional regulation

See also: Emotional regulation

Emotional regulation refers to the mental processes by which individuals influence which emotions they have, when they have them, and how they personally experience and express these emotions. It's a core aspect of emotional intelligence and mental health, enabling people to adapt to situations, maintain personal and business relationships, and achieve their personal goals.^[15]

Emotional detachment, emotional detachment and objectivity

See also: Emotional detachment and Obsessive thinking and Personal development and Friendship and Social networking and Gratitude and mindfulness and Self-awareness and Positive thinking and Mental toughness and Self-awareness and Mental toughness and Psychological resilience and Self-care and Stress management

Emotional detachment is the ability to separate oneself from strong emotions.

Emotional detachment can be practiced through techniques such as: learning to master emotions (See also: Self-regulation), redirecting one's focus rather than obsessing about an issue/person (Focusing on personal development, strengthening friendship/relationships or developing new relationships and practicing gratitude), mindfulness, increasing self-awareness, engaging in positive thinking and not caring what negative or toxic people think, assertively setting healthy boundaries (Communication boundaries and limiting contact), increasing one's mental toughness and psychological resiliency, forgiveness and engaging in self-care (For example, Stress management techniques). Specifically, it's a mental process that involves recognizing and accepting thoughts and feelings without letting them overwhelm you, and it can be a helpful tool for managing difficult emotions and difficult relationships.

Emotional detachment is often helpful for gaining additional objectivity when engaging problem solving or when dealing with difficult people. Frustration, fear and anger takes resources away from the executive decision making of the prefrontal cortex part of the brain.^[16]

Overcoming unhealthy emotional detachment

See also: Empathy

• How to Overcome Emotional Detachment
• Emotional detachment: when it’s healthy and when it’s toxic by Elizabeth Perry, ACC
• 10 Signs Of Emotional Detachment & How To Heal, From Therapists

Cugelman Emotion Map

• Cugelman Emotion Map by Brian Cugelman, PhD

• The Psychology of Color and Emotional Design

Videos:

• Map of emotions

Cicumplex model of emotion

See also: Circumplex model of emotion

The circumplex model of emotion is "a psychological model that represents emotions as points on a two-dimensional circular graph, with the primary axes being "valence" (positive to negative) and "arousal" (low to high), meaning emotions can be plotted based on how pleasant or unpleasant they are and how intense they are; essentially describing the emotional state through these two key dimensions."^[17]

The Circumplex model of emotion has two axes: Valence and Arousal

Plutchik’s Wheel of Emotions

See also: Plutchik’s Wheel of Emotions

"Emotions can be complex, scary and overwhelming. How can we make sense of them, navigate them more effectively, and not feel overwhelmed by them? Plutchik’s Wheel of Emotions, or Feelings Wheel, is a valuable resource to make sense of feelings and grow your emotional literacy, one of the foundations of practicing emotional intelligence."^[18]

Article:

• Plutchik’s Wheel of Emotions: Exploring the Emotion Wheel

Video:

• Plutchik’s Wheel of Emotions - Video playlist

Plutchik’s Wheel of Emotions and its 8 primary emotions

According to James Madison University: "There are 8 primary emotions. You are born with these emotions wired into your brain. That wiring causes your body to react in certain ways and for you to have certain urges when the emotion arises."^[19] See: List of primary emotions and List of primary emotions at James Madison University.

Plutchik’s Wheel of Emotions

A graph showing the primary, secondary, and tertiary dyads on the Plutchik wheel of emotions.

Low emotional intelligence: Signs, problems and solving problems associated with low emotional individuals

Signs of low emotional intelligence:

• Signs of Low Emotional Intelligence by Kendra Cherry, MSEd

Problems with Low Emotional Intelligence

One problem with low emotional intelligence is that people cannot handle hard truths in life, and thus safe spaces are being commonly made because of this. Other issues include blaming others, lack of empathy, not being able to understand how others feel, and many more. ^[20] However, one of the biggest problems with low emotional intelligence is that it links to criminal behavior, as studies have shown that convicted offenders have lower emotional intelligence than most people.^[21]

Dealing with people with low emotional intelligence

• Effective Strategies For Interacting With Individuals With Low Emotional Intelligence
• How to deal with someone with low emotional intelligence, Harvard University
• How to Communicate With Someone Who Has Lower Emotional Intelligence Than You
• How To Successfully Handle The Emotionally Unintelligent People In Your Life
• Low emotional intelligence: What to know, Medical News Today

Emotional bias

See also: Emotional bias

An emotional bias is a bias which stems from impulse or intuition (Emotional biases tend to result from reasoning influenced by feelings).^[22] Emotional biases are harder to control for many people because they are based on feelings, which can be difficult to change for some individuals.^[23]

In investing, common emotional biases are "loss aversion, overconfidence, self-control (People fail to act in pursuit of their long-term, overarching goals because of a lack of self-discipline), status quo, endowment effect, and regret aversion. Understanding and detecting biases is the first step in overcoming the effect of biases on financial decisions."^[24]

List of emotional biases

• List of 20 emotional biases

Emotional Maturity

Emotionally mature people seek to fix the problem or behavior rather than blame someone else for their problems. ^[25] This involves putting how others feel before oneself this develops character and builds personal growth. ^[26] It also involves being flexibility such as being able to see every situation as unique, and a way to adapt to it. ^[27]

Journaling and increasing emotional intelligence

See also: Diary

Journaling can increase one's emotional intelligence. The University of St. Augustine for Health Sciences notes: "Journaling can help you make sense of how you’re feeling about a certain person or situation that is troubling or inspiring you. It can also help you understand your triggers. The process of writing down your thoughts as honestly and with as little judgment as possible allows for self-discovery. When you get to know yourself better, you develop a deeper understanding of your reactions, strengths, and weaknesses, as well as what environments help you thrive."^[28]

Emotions, stress management, cognitive therapy and emotion-focused coping

See also: Stress management and Cognitive therapy and Emotion-focused coping

Stress is the emotional and physical tension brought on a person’s reaction to the demands of life. If a person lacks stress management abilities such as the knowledge of how to remain mentally calm during difficult situations (See: mental toughness and psychological resilience and Sport psychology), stress frequently causes anxiety, irritability, and inability to concentrate. Stress can also lead to headaches, and a rapid heartbeat.^[29] Many illnesses, such as chronic anxiety states, high blood pressure, heart disease, and addictive disorders, to name a few, also seem to be influenced by chronic or overwhelming stress.^[30]

Cognitive therapy is a form of psychotherapy, developed by Dr. Aaron T. Beck,^[31] that emphasizes the important role of thinking in how we feel and what we do. Also called cognitive-behavioral therapy' (CBT), it is "based on the idea that our thoughts cause our feelings and behaviors, not external things, like people, situations, and events."^[32] The theory is that depression and anxiety are caused by negative thinking patterns.^[33] or cognitive distortions, such as jumping to conclusions, all or nothing thinking, and "Catastrophizing".^[34]

Emotion-focused coping is "a stress management technique that involves regulating negative emotional reactions to a stressor, rather than directly addressing the problem causing the stress. It's often used when a person feels the stressor is beyond their ability to change, focusing instead on managing their feelings about the situation.^[35]

Emotional conflict

See also: Emotional conflict and Neuroticism

Emotional conflict occurs when a person experiences two (or more) opposing emotions/feelings at the same time, and those opposing feelings are pulling them in different directions.

Carl Jung indicated that "emotional conflicts and the intervention of the unconscious are the classical features of...medical psychology".^[36] The child psychoanalyst Eric Erickson indicated that emotional conflict was a source of neurosis in children.^[37]

Emotional conflict happens when:

• A person wishes to do something, but another part of the person doesn’t want to do it.

• A person feels both positive and negative emotions about the same person or situation.

• A person has two or more different values, desires, or needs inside themselves that are incompatible.

Emotional conflict can create stress, indecision, hesitation, and/or even physical tension. See also: Stress management

Sociology of emotions

See also: Sociology of emotions and Sociology

The sociology of emotions explores how social and cultural factors shape emotional experiences, expressions, and their impact on society. It examines how emotions are socially constructed, learned, and regulated in a person and society within specific cultural contexts. This field of sociology emerged in the 1970s, shifting the focus from individualistic explanations of emotions to recognizing their social/cultural dimensions.^[38]

Liberal Response

Despite being a conservative trait the term and promotion for it is unfortunately exploited to promote left-wing causes and often used for emotional manipulation of children in the school systems because of Daniel Goleman's book "Emotional Intelligence", promoting concepts such as reducing core subjects as a social element to homosexual acceptance in schools and even banning corporal punishment.^[39]

Atheism and emotional problems

See also: Atheism and emotional problems

Research indicates that religiosity is positively associated with ability in emotional intelligence.^[40][41][42] For more information, please see: Atheism and emotional problems

Books

• The New Emotional Intelligence ' by Dr. Travis Bradberry. Bruyere Publishing. May 13, 2025
• Emotional Intelligence 2.0 by Dr. Travis Bradberry and Dr. Jean Greaves. ‎ Talentsmart. June 16, 2009 (Updated in 2021)

See also

• Emotional health
• Emotional stability
• Theory of multiple intelligences
• Moral intelligence
• Bodily-kinesthetic intelligence
• Atheism and emotional/intrapersonal intelligence
• Atheism and negative emotions/thoughts

External links

• Emotional Intelligence: What it is and why it matters
• Emotional intelligence
• Emotional intelligence information - University of New Hampshire
• The five components of emotional intelligence
• Emotional Objectivity: Mastering the Art of Balanced Decision-Making
• Mastering Emotional Intelligence and Cognitive Mastery: From Perception and Attachment to Emotional Reasoning, Habits, and Self-Awareness with Nik Shah

Business-oriented material on emotional intelligence:

• Emotional Intelligence Sills: What They Are and How to Develop Them, Harvard Business School
• Domains of Emotional Intelligence, MBA Knowledge Base
• Why emotional intelligence is important in leadership, Harvard Business School
• Emotional Intelligence Has 12 Elements. Which Do You Need to Work On?, Harvard Business Review

Videos:

Emotional intelligence - video playlist, Video playlist

• How to process emotions

Notes