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EMOTIONAL
INTELLIGENCE: Fad or a concept whose time has come?
By
DR. PHILIP J. SMITH, Ph.D.
Vice President of Assessment Services
Emotional intelligence
is a hot topic these days. Daniel Goleman, popularized the concept
with his best selling 1995 book, "Emotional Intelligence".
His book created considerable enthusiasm for the idea that emotional
competencies are an important determinant of success in the workplace.
Of particular interest, Goleman proposed the theory that intellectual
ability is overemphasized in the selection of top executives and
that the EI competencies instead are the critical factors to look
at in determining executives’ success. A number of more recent
collections of essays and research, Handbook for Emotional Intelligence
for the Workplace (2000) and Emotional Intelligence in
the Workplace (2001) provide a more scientific look at the
measurement and predictive utility of emotional competencies.
However, it is important to put the current interest in emotional
intelligence in perspective. The idea that some type of social or
interpersonal intelligence is important for performance in the workplace
has actually been around for quite some time. There were training
programs on emotional skills as early as the 1950’s, if not
before. Moreover, individuals who have worked closely in the selection
or development of corporate talent have long observed that interpersonal
skills are a critical factor in workplace success. Because of this
long-term knowledge about the importance of interpersonal skills
it would seem the move towards measuring these abilities is long
overdue. At Drake Inglesi Milardo, we have started using
an Emotional Intelligence Instrument developed by Myers Caruso and
Solove (2000). We are excited about this instrument because it requires
the test taker to demonstrate competencies as opposed to simply
reporting how they typically perform in situations. For instance,
test takers are shown human faces and are asked to judge the presence
or absence of different emotions. Other sections of the test require
the respondent to choose the best option among different alternatives
offered to deal with difficult interpersonal situations. Test results
help us understand how well an individual perceives, manages and
understands emotions and situations leading to emotional reactions.
We feel that the test complements our other assessment tools by
providing an additional source of information, which can help us
understand how an individual will deal with the complex interpersonal
situations encountered in the workplace. Tests of this type are
used with increasing frequency in the workplace, as companies are
starting to use techniques such as behaviorally based work simulations.
(See HR Magazine, May 2002).
However, it is important not to lose perspective in our excitement
about a new technique or assessment tool. Performance measures such
as the EI test we are using provide another lens through which to
view perspective employees. A clearer understanding and assessment
of emotional competencies along with carefully gathered information
regarding intellectual ability, motivation, needs, interests and
experience will result in a well rounded assessment.
If you have questions about the assessment of the EI competencies
you can contact Phil Smith at psmith@dimihr.com
or you can call him at 207-772-2823
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