The “Big Idea” That Is yet to Be: Toward A More Motivated, Contextual, and Dynamic Model of Emotional Intelligence

Abstract

The "emotional intelligence" construct has been the focus of enormous scrutiny over the past 20 years (Salovey & Mayer, 1990). Much of this interest is based on the so-called "big idea" that first brought widespread attention to it-an idea popularized by Goleman's best-selling book Emotional Intelligence (1995), in which he claimed that emotional intelligence (EI) can matter more than the intelligence quotient (IQ) in predicting important life outcomes. Despite the appeal of this idea, recent metaanalyses indicate that emotional intelligence has not lived up to its promise. What are the implications of these findings for emotional intelligence research and for people interested in applying EI research to their organizations? We suggest that the predictive validity of emotional intelligence can be enhanced by refining the construct through the incorporation of three well-established principles of psychological processing: (a) dual-process principles that capture automatic and deliberate processing, (b) motivational principles that highlight the importance of goals for processing social-emotional information, and (c) person X situation principles that delineate how context influences the way people think, feel, and behave. We discuss the implications of this reconceptualization for emotional intelligence theory, research, and practice.

Emotional intelligence and individual differences in affective processes underlying task‐contingent conscientiousness

“…Moreover, by conceptualising emotional intelligence as a knowledge structure, our study provides a direct link between emotional intelligence and social‐cognitive theories that underlie the dynamic approach to personality, such as the CAPS model (see Cervone, ). Emotional intelligence has traditionally been studied with little regard to social‐cognitive processes (Fiori, ), yet consideration of such processes has recently been highlighted as an important area for future research on emotional intelligence in the management literature (Ybarra, Kross, & Sanchez‐Burks, ).…”

A pilot study of an emotional intelligence training intervention for a paediatric team

“…On the one hand, research in developmental, organisational and neuropsychology suggests that changes in the competencies which comprise EI can occur in adulthood 4 28–30. On the other hand, to the extent that EI is based more on automatic (as opposed to deliberate or conscious) mental processes,31 EI may be less amenable to enhancement through training 27. Training may also have limited performance-related effects if those receiving the training lack the motivation to implement newly learned skills.…”

Which Emotional Intelligence? A Comparison of Measures and Implications for Counseling Psychology

“…This assertion is supported by results of other comparative studies (Livingstone & Day, 2005;O'Conner & Little, 2003). The disparity between models continues to illustrate what has been referred to as the "elusive" nature of the EI construct (Davies, Stankov, & Roberts, 1998;Ybarra, Kross, & Sanchez-Burks, 2014).…”