Emotional intelligence, voice and flow: a team-level study of work teams

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to investigate how emotional intelligence and voice climate interact with flow in work teams. Design/methodology/approach The authors used multilevel structural equation modeling to analyze the nested data (individuals within teams). A total of 42 work teams (166 full-time employees) from the service industry participated in this research. Findings The results showed that emotional intelligence and voice behavior are positively associated with flow experience at the individual level. It was also demonstrated that emotional intelligence exerts partial influence on flow via individual voice behavior. At the team level, the authors only found a positive relationship between emotional intelligence and flow. Originality/value This research fills the knowledge gap of flow’s antecedents in teams. Members who are emotional intelligent and active in making suggestions to teams are more likely to experience flow in teams. Practitioners should be able to facilitate flow in the workplace through implementing training modules related to emotion appraisal/regulation and effective voice behavior.

Flow in contemporary musicians: Individual differences in flow proneness, anxiety, and emotional intelligence

“…The reported positive relationship between EI and flow proneness ( r = 0.39) in musicians aligns with a previous study on classical pianists [ 37 ] and bolsters foundational research in other domains, such as work [ 91 ] and education [ 92 ], which suggested an association between flow and EI warrants further exploration. Those with high EI may possess skills such as emotional management and emotional regulation [ 93 ], helping with flow proneness, but such coping mechanisms may be insufficient when individuals have high anxiety at clinical levels.…”

How Cultural Intelligence Facilitates Employee Voice in the Hospitality Industry

“…As for individual factors, employees with a proactive personality or highly extraverted ones perceive voice as an opportunity to serve their interests and to achieve organizational goals [32,33]. Employees' abilities, such as communication competency and EQ, facilitate the exchange of ideas, leading to voice behavior [34,35].…”

Emotion in teams: a scoping literature review

“…Structural equation modeling was a popular research method as well ( n = 9). However, we found only one study used multi-level structural equation modelling (MSEM) to analyze multi-level data (Xie et al , 2021). Regarding qualitative research, most scholars used traditional semi-structured interviews as their main source for research data (n = 11).…”

“…Model- and design-based MSEM is more advantageous than regular multiple regression analysis with aggregated scores (Xie et al , 2021). If data are aggregated, much information is lost, and the statistical analysis loses power (Hox et al , 2017).…”

“…Thus, using MSEM is relevant and beneficial for future researchers interested in emotions with a hierarchical data structure. By doing so, MSEM can create a more accurate understanding of emotional phenomena in organizations (Molina-Azorín et al , 2020; Xie et al , 2021).…”