Psychology

ABSTRACT
Emotional intelligence has been proven to be just as, or even more important than traditional cognitive or academic intelligence in having a happy, successful life.  Both EQ and IQ are essential in entering a good school or in securing a good job, but emotional intelligence far outweighs plain academic intelligence when it comes to self-awareness, interpersonal relationships, and decision-making.

This paper discusses emotional intelligence and its importance to ones personal, familial, and professional life.  It gives a brief historical background on the emergence of emotional intelligence as well as a comparison between EQ and IQ.  It likewise presents how and why EQ plays a crucial role in the success of different aspects of life.

High EQ, Good Life
Researches say that IQ or intelligence quotient is just a number, a measure of ones intelligence based on a test.  It is a mathematical formula the ratio of ones mental age to hisher chronological age multiplied by 100, according to the definition by Princeton University (httpwordnetweb.princeton.eduperlwebwnsiq).  In short, IQ measures ones cognitive abilities, as well as logic and analytical skills, mostly assessed through objective tests.

Gone are the days when IQ is all that matters.  In this ironic world of diversity and individuality, the more important intelligence is the kind that helps one survive everyday life and not just pass an exam.  This intelligence has been labeled Emotional Intelligence or Emotional Quotient (EI or EQ).  Susan Dunn, an EQ coach, said, EQ gets you through life, IQ gets you through school (httpwww.selfgrowth.comarticlesDunn157.html).  The idea of an intelligence that goes beyond the cognitive domain was explored a long time ago by David Wechsler (1940) who wrote about non-intellective abilities that can predict success and Robert Thorndike (Thorndike  Stein, 1937) who proposed the idea of social intelligence.  EQ received much hype when Howard Gardner put forward the theory of multiple intelligences in 1983 and more prominence when Daniel Goleman wrote the book titled Emotional Intelligence in 1995.  But it was Salovey and Mayer (1990) who invented the term emotional intelligence and defined it as a form of social intelligence that involves the ability to monitor ones own and others feelings and emotions, to discriminate among them, and to use this information to guide ones thinking and action (Salovey  Mayer, 1990, p. 5).  EQ remains a fairly new model of behavior, one that is rising fast in both popularity and functionality.

EQ versus IQ
The long-standing debate between EQ and IQ stemmed from several researchers saying that some abilities and skills are purely cognitive while some combine thought and feelings.  Traditionally, IQ or conventional intelligence is academic intelligence.  Advocates of EQ contest that IQ is a narrow measure of intelligence compared to EQ.  Studies have shown that IQ alone cannot reliably predict job performance (Hunter  Hunter, 1984 Sternberg, 1996).  Realistically though, to be emotionally intelligent, one also needs to have cognitive skills.  It is more of a partnership rather than a competition between the two.  One cannot function well without the other as the two are closely linked and not on opposite ends of the intelligence pole as many believe.  The famous marshmallow study showed that after 10 years, the children who successfully resisted the temptation to eat the marshmallow as they were told had higher SAT scores than those who did not wait (Shoda, Mischel,  Peake, 1990).  Thus, there should be no versus.  Instead, EQ and IQ should be studied and used together.

Emotional Intelligence in all Aspects of Life
Even the philosopher Plato said, All learning has an emotional base (cited in  HYPERLINK httpwww.eiconsortium.orgmembersemmerling.htm Emmerling, Shanwal,  Mandal, 2008, p. ix).  EQ is increasingly becoming significant not only on the individual level, but in organizational development and the corporate world. Emotional intelligence is the ability to recognize and regulate ones own emotions and others as well (Cherniss  Goleman, 2001). Intrapersonally, emotional intelligence has to do with how one handles impulsive behavior and deals with upsetting situations. Self-control, trustworthiness, conscientiousness, adaptability, innovation and feedback are key ideas in emotional intelligence (Goleman, 1995) that are important not just in dealing with ones emotions but also in relating with others.  People who are emotionally intelligent turn out to be leaders and not mere managers, great parents and not just financial providers, outstanding mentors and not only instructors.

Researches show that emotional intelligence affects a persons behavior in school, community, and the workplace. A study emphasized that EQ at the individual level is related to academic achievement, work performance, the ability to communicate effectively, solve everyday problems, build meaningful interpersonal relationships, and make moral decisions ( HYPERLINK httpwww.eiconsortium.orgEmotional_Intelligence_Theoretical_and_Cultural_Perspectives.htm  HYPERLINK httpwww.eiconsortium.orgmembersemmerling.htm Emmerling, Shanwal,  Mandal, 2008, p. ix).

People with high EQ are found to engage less in problem behaviors, self-destruction and negative habits like smoking, alcohol and drug abuse, or violent episodes.  High EQ individuals have more positive social interactions and clear goals, aims, and missions (Mayer, Salovey,  Caruso, 2004).
Goleman (1995) identified the five domains of EQ.  These are knowing ones emotions, managing ones emotions, motivating oneself, recognizing and understanding others emotions and managing relationshipsall essential aspects of building social networks, whether personal friendships or work relations.  An emotionally intelligent parent understands the growing up pains that teenagers undergo, thus, heshe can better address the needs of the children resulting in positive experiences inside the family.  A boss with high EQ can control hisher disappointment over an employee with poor performance, avoiding humiliating the employee in front of workmates, and thereby preventing hurting the feelings of another human being.  A friend possessing high levels of emotional intelligence can listen with empathy to the problems of hisher pal resulting in the probable solution or resolution of the problem at hand.  Emotional intelligence put to practice in a myriad of situations and diverse conditions can create, foster and maintain positive, meaningful and joyful relationships in the home, at work, and in daily life.

In the book Primal Leadership Realizing the Power of Emotional Intelligence (2002), Daniel Goleman, Richard Boyatzis and Annie McKee recommended that schools should include emotional intelligence in the courses they offer, especially for business degrees.  They point out that the benefits of doing such will be felt not just by a new generation of leaders, but for our families, communities, and society as a whole (Goleman, Boyatzis  McKee, 2002, p. xiii).

Again, though there is no debate that EQ is highly important, realistically, academic or cognitive intelligence is also valuable.  In the book EQ  IQ  Best Leadership Practices for Caring and Successful Schools, the authors said that combined EQ and IQ is vital to producing skillful, compassionate, fit, and thriving students in a troubled environment (Elias, Arnold  Hussey, eds., 2003). An exploratory study found that among three scales (EQ, IQ and managerial intelligence or MQ), the EQ scale showed highly promising reliability and validity, while IQ and MQ predicted organizational advancement.  Higher validity was reported when the three scales are combined.  Results proved that using EQ and IQ together is more reliable in predicting success than either measure by itself (Dulewicz  Higgs, 2000).

Conclusion
Emotional intelligence is important in ones personal, familial, and professional life.  People with high EQ are aware of their feelings and others feelings.  They are more likely to be productive, and therefore, successful.  They also have the ability to motivate others to be like them.  The presence of people with high EQ in the home and workplace results in a more positive environment with less conflict and more cooperation.  Intelligence quotient is likewise important, but EQ definitely outweighs it.