Emotional Intelligence - publié le 20/06/2008

Résumé du document

As you all know, IQ tests are taken by those who want to measure their intelligence in a scientific and objective way. However, some theories tend to let us think that IQ is not the only indicator of intelligence, and that other sorts of intelligence also need to be taken into account. I will present one of them, the emotional intelligence (EI), which is defined as the capacity to perceive and manage one's emotions, as well as the ones of a group or of other individuals. I will try to define emotional intelligence and the way it is measured, explaining the origins and the concept and who the key theorists are, and conclude by broadly exposing the bases of the criticism that EI is exposed to

Extraits

[...] Emotional intelligence As you all know, IQ tests are taken by those who want to measure their intelligence in a scientific and objective way. However, some theories tend to let us think that IQ is not the only indicator, and that other sorts of intelligence also need to be taken into account. I will present one of them, the emotional intelligence which is the capacity to perceive and manage one's emotions, as well as the ones of a group or of other individuals. [...]

[...] However, there is a great diversity of models and definitions, which lead to criticism. Bibliography Smith, M. K. (2002) "Howard Gardner and multiple intelligences", the encyclopedia of informal education Payne, W.L. (1983/1986). A study of emotion: developing emotional intelligence; self integration; relating to fear, pain and desire. Dissertation Abstracts International p. 203A. (University microfilms No. [...]

[...] Trait EI model (2007) Finally, the most recent model of emotional intelligence is the trait EI model. Its complete name is trait emotional self-efficacy and refers to constellation of behavioural dispositions and self-perceptions concerning one's ability to recognize, process, and utilize emotion-laden information" (Petrides). Petrides is very critical of the ability-based model, saying that its measurement is based on “psychometrically meaningless” procedures. In fact, the trait EI model conceptualizes the emotional intelligence as a personality trait outside the cognitive abilities of individuals. [...]

[...] It also includes self- management and relationship management, which sounds quite clear. The interesting thing in both theories of mixed models is that the emotional intelligence is not seen as innate, and that it can be worked on and developed. The Bar-On model of emotional-social intelligence is the second of the two mixed-models of EI and is named after the psychologist Bar-On, who was the first to use the term “emotion quotient”. As Goleman, he defines EI as relating well to people and adapting to different situations to be more successful. [...]

[...] emotional intelligence is the sine qua non of leadership". Landy thinks that this is too extreme and that it is not based on scientific standards, and adds that the data on which these claims are based are held in databases which are not available to independent researchers for verification. Finally, the last danger of emotional intelligence is the misuse of its testing. The use of EI tests, whose validity has not been established, may lead to arbitrary discrimination practices, for example for hiring purposes, that could lead to unfair job discrimination. [...]