1. What Is the Difference Between EQ and IQ?
Emotional Quotient (EQ) is a way to measure how a person recognizes emotions in himself or
herself and others, and manages these emotional states to work better as a group or team.
Intelligence Quotient (IQ) is a value that indicates a person's ability to learn, understand, and
apply information and skills in a meaningful way. The major difference between EQ and IQ is
what part of a person's mental abilities they measure: understanding emotion or understanding
information.
Understanding Emotional and Intelligence Quotient
According to some theories of brain function, a high EQ means someone is self-confident, self-
aware, and able to handle difficult emotional experiences. It is often tied directly to the degree of
success a person may have in the workplace and in personal relationships. People with high EQ
can often better recognize and control their own emotions, and recognize emotional states in
others to adjust their behavior accordingly.
A person's IQ, on the other hand, measures concepts like logical reasoning, word comprehension,
and math skills rather than creative potential or emotional abilities. People with a high IQ may be
able to learn certain subjects very quickly and make connections between ideas that others miss.
They often have great academic success, although they may struggle to find classes that
challenge them. The ability to acquire knowledge does not necessarily mean people can
recognize and manage their own emotional states, however.
A Brief History of Emotional Intelligence
Peter Salovey and John D. Mayer coined the term 'Emotional Intelligence' in 1990 describing it
as "a form of social intelligence that involves the ability to monitor one’s own and others’
feelings and emotions, to discriminate among them, and to use this information to guide one’s
thinking and action".
Salovey and Mayer also initiated a research program intended to develop valid measures of
emotional intelligence and to explore its significance. For instance, they found in one study that
when a group of people saw an upsetting film, those who scored high on emotional clarity
(which is the ability to identify and give a name to a mood that is being experienced) recovered
more quickly. In another study, individuals who scored higher in the ability to perceive
accurately, understand, and appraise others’ emotions were better able to respond flexibly to
changes in their social environments and build supportive social networks.
Daniel Goleman and Emotional Intelligence
In the 1990’s Daniel Goleman became aware of Salovey and Mayer’s work, and this eventually
led to his book, Emotional Intelligence. Goleman was a science writer for the New York Times,

2. specialising in brain and behaviour research. He trained as a psychologist at Harvard where he
worked with David McClelland, among others. McClelland was among a growing group of
researchers who were becoming concerned with how little traditional tests of cognitive
intelligence told us about what it takes to be successful in life.
Goleman argued that it was not cognitive intelligence that guaranteed business success but
emotional intelligence. He described emotionally intelligent people as those with four
characteristics:
1. They were good at understanding their own emotions (self-awareness)
2. They were good at managing their emotions (self-management)
3. They were empathetic to the emotional drives of other people (social awareness)
4. They were good at handling other people’s emotions (social skills)
4 BUILDING BLOCKS OF EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE
Self Awareness
Self awareness is the foundation of personal growth and success. Daniel Goleman calls it the
'keystone' of emotional intelligence. Find out how one of the most powerful tools recognised by
leading psychologists and change agents can revolutionise your life starting today.
Recognise and understand your emotions and you have the power to control them. This
kind of self awareness makes it impossible for your emotions to rule you. Unless you choose
to give them the upper hand.
Men and women are not prisoners of fate, but only prisoners of their own minds. Roosevelt's
insight, shared by thought leaders around the world, points to an opportunity for the ultimate
prison break. You can escape reacting to events and emotions and learn to choose your response
to any situation.
In the Prison Break television series Michael Scofield's freedom came as a result of learning the
system well. The freedom to choose your response and not be a prisoner to reactions also comes
as a result of learning the system well. In this case the system is you. You have to know yourself.
Know Yourself
Before you can make changes in yourself you have to know what there is to work with.
Becoming self-aware is about the process of understanding yourself.
Emotional awareness means being able to recognise emotions that you experience, understand
the feelings associated with the emotion, and understand what you think and do as a result.

3. Professional sportsmen and women get intensive training to help them recognise and overcome
emotions during a game.
It's essential they don't allow their performance to be affected by frustration or anger.
When you're aware of your strengths and limits you'll be more confident about what you can and
cannot do. Self-confident people are more assertive about what they believe to be right.
Being assertive doesn't mean you always get your way but rather that you convey your thoughts
and ideas confidently and justify why you believe a particular decision or idea is the right one.
According to Daniel Goleman the competencies associated with self-awareness are:
Emotional self awareness: recognising your emotions and the impact they have on your life.
Accurate self-assessment: identifying your strengths and limitations.
Self-confidence: knowing your self worth and capabilities.
Developing self-awareness
Self awareness can be developed. Spend some time recognising areas you need to develop and
intentionally making an effort to develop or strengthen that aspect of yourself.
So, how can you become more aware of your strengths and areas for development?
You could
Rate Yourself: What do you think your strengths are?
Ask others for feedback: Be open to hearing what others think of you.
Complete a formal assessment test. These could include a personality test, discovering your
values, your skills, your abilities.
Self Regulation
Self regulation is a key component of emotional intelligence. Learn how to manage emotions and
reactions, build your emotional intelligence, and what to do if someone offers you a
marshmallow.
Self regulation, or self management, is the key to our ability to manage change, or any
other curve ball life throws us.
Stephen Coveyemphasises that you and I have response-ability - the ability to choose our
response to any situation. Managing our emotions allows us to make these choices so we can
choose how we respond to any situation.

4. That's right. You choose the best response for the situation rather than being a slave to impulsive
emotions.
And yes, the humble marshmallow played a central role in research into self regulation. More
about this later, I promise.
Definition of Self Regulation
Self regulation is mostly about being able to control your emotions and responses to situations
and other people.
But it's also about feeling positive emotions and expressing positive emotions to others.
Some of the abilities (also known as competencies) that are part of self management are:
emotional self-control – controlling impulsive emotions.
trustworthiness – being honest and taking action that is in line with your values.
flexibility – being able to adapt and work with different people in different situations.
optimism – the ability to see opportunities in situations and the good in other people.
achievement – developing your performance to meet your own standards of excellence.
initiative – taking action when it is necessary.
Controlling negative reactions
Sometimes it's okay to let emotions control us, especially when it comes to positive emotions.
Your excitement and joy at passing an exam, or achieving a target for the month, are appropriate
expressions of emotion. But it's not great to be controlled by negative emotions such as anger,
fear or frustration.
Emotional intelligence suggests that it's important to be aware of all our emotions, and once
we're aware we can choose how we react and express our feelings. Self regulation is about using
self awareness to keep negative reactions under control.
Managing your emotions
There are some things you can start doing to improve your self regulation. Here are a few ideas:
1. Become more aware of your emotions (self awareness) and how you react to them.
2. If people are critical work out how what they say can be constructive and helpful to you.
3. Take time out: get away from a difficult situation for a short time and get some exercise, drink
water, or breathe deeply.
4. Make time to think about situations and your emotions. Think of ways you could change what
you do or the way you react.

5. 5. Plant new thoughts: when you've identified emotions and reactions that are not useful replace
them with new ones that are more positive. Then work hard and practice putting these into
action.
Social Awareness
Social awareness will help you know what others think about you. But research tells me we're
not very good at this anymore.
Understanding other people's feelings is central to emotional intelligence. Get this wrong
and you'll be seen as uncaring and insensitive. Getting it right is essential for success.
According to Daniel Goleman the competencies associated with being socially aware are:
Empathy: understanding the other person’s emotions, needs and concerns.
Organisational Awareness: the ability to understand the politics within an organization and how
these affect the people working in them.
Service: the ability to understand and meet the needs of clients and customers.
Essentially awareness of social situations is about carefully considering what people want, and
planning to communicate with them in a way that is intended to meet that need.
Is this the same as manipulation? I'm not sure. Great leaders and public speakers are skilled in
this ability and it helps them build support.
I don't believe social awareness is intended to be quite as calculated as manipulation. At best
being socially aware is a natural response to people, taking their situation and needs into account
as much as possible.
Caring 2.0
Recent research, reported by Time Magazine, finds that college students have less empathy — the
ability to understand and share the feelings of others — than students of previous generations.
Digital communication, social networking, video conferencing and other forms of new media are
being blamed for this loss of empathy.
After all, it's much easier to say negative things about others if you don't have to say it to their
face. And if I don't feel like engaging in your problems, I can simply log off, or even 'unfriend'
you. It's an easy option.
The trouble is that when there is no empathy, when we don't work to understand the needs of
others, there is also a significant loss of trust.

6. Because I don't really know what you're thinking and feeling I trust you less, and isolate myself
more. This can have major implications for business where trust is essential for successful
leadership and partnerships.
More importantly though, when you respond to the needs and feelings of other people, you gain
their trust.
Others will be labelled uncaring and insensitive, but you are trusted when you're able to
understand and respond to the needs and values of individuals, and the group.
This is true whether you're a salesperson dealing with the public, or a leader in an organisation.
Empathy
Leaders in organisations have traditionally viewed empathy with suspicion, thinking that there is
no place for soft emotional skills in the tough world of business.
My experience is that managers worry that employees will take advantage of them if they show
any empathy.
But changing times and recognition of the strategic advantages of taking employees feelings into
consideration has lead to social consciousness being regarded as a critical skill for effective
leaders.
This has even impacted the training given to doctors. Today doctors are trained to formulate a
bio-psycho-social understanding of the problem rather than treating patients purely as a
diagnosis.
Empathising with someone - understanding their point of view - doesn't mean you have to agree
with their point of view.
Empathy is really about acknowledging the emotions of others, being thoughtful and considerate
of their feelings, and making decisions that take those feelings into consideration.
How to build social awareness
Improve your listening skills. Take a short course in effective communication skills.
Pay close attention to interactions with other people. Be aware of what they say, how they say it
and what they do.
Identify other people’s emotional states. Listen carefully to what they're saying and notice how
they respond to external events, such as someone greeting them or asking them to do
something.
Think about your feelings. How does the other person’s emotion make you feel?
Think before you answer and give clear answers.

7. Sensitivity and diversity
Developing social awareness is important as it affects your response to people and situations.
The starting place for becoming socially aware is self awareness.
Self awareness is essential in order to understand the feelings and emotions of others while self
management is necessary to ensure that your response is appropriate to the situation.
An empathic response requires awareness of diversity and a sensitivity to the needs and emotions
of others.
Diversity encompasses acceptance and respect while recognising our individual differences and
uniqueness. Open communication plays an essential role in managing diversity and building an
awareness of social situations.
Relationship Management
Relationship management allows you to connect with others in ways that help them feel
understood and supported. Managing relationships is an essential emotional intelligence skill that
enables you to effectively lead change or manage personal change.
Managing relationships is much more than being friendly. It takes effort and intention (and some
strategy) to get the best from a situation and manage the way people respond.
Relationship Management
Relationships can be complicated. I was fascinated to read Rudy Giuliani (Mayor of the City of
New York: 1993 - 2001 and Time 2001 Person of the Year ) acknowledge how difficult it really
is to predict how people will respond to each other and how they'll work together.
In his (highly recommended) 2002 book, 'Leadership' Giuliani observes, "Sometimes very
different people will form a harmonious unit, while those with a lot in common can't be in a
room together" (p. 111).
So is relationship management just luck, or is there something we can do?
One thing you can be sure of is that if you're going to manage relationships effectively you'll
need to use every bit of self awareness,self regulation and social awareness to understand what's
going on and how it's affecting you.
You see, effective management of relationships relies on all the abilities in the three domains of
emotional intelligence that I've highlighted above.

8. Four criteria for effective relationship management
Before you can manage relationships you need to notice and manage the effect people have on
you and be aware of what they are feeling and what's led to them feeling that way.
Only then can you decide how best to interact with them in order to achieve the outcome that
best suits your needs.
If you read that sentence again you'll see there are four criteria to effective relationship
management:
1. A decision regarding the best course of action in a particular situation.
This will be based on research you've done to understand how people are feeling and why
they're feeling that way.
Based on this you'll have thought about different ways to interact with them and the
different reactions you might get when you say or do something. You'll also be aware of
their effect on you and how to manage this appropriately.
2. An interaction with others based on the research you've done.
3. An outcome: how and what you say or do will be guided by a specific outcome you want to
achieve. This makes relationship management an intentional activity.
4. Your needs: the outcome you intend to achieve will be guided by your specific needs, or the
business needs, at that time.
Anyone involved in the entertainment industry might find these aspects of relationship
management very familiar.
It's as important that in business and our personal lives we are equally aware of how we manage
the relationships around us.
Competencies
According to Daniel Goleman the competencies associated with relationship management are:
Influence: persuading others.
Inspirational leadership: providing a vision that motivates others.
Developing others: providing feedback and building skills and knowledge.
Change catalyst: recognising the need for change and supporting the process.
Conflict management: Settling disputes, differences of opinion and misunderstanding.
Building bonds: creating and maintaining networks.
Teamwork and collaboration: building effective teams.

9. The competencies of relationship management are often associated with leadership, mostly
because these are obvious areas we associate with leadership. But these competencies are equally
relevant to managing personal change.
Leaders find ways to inspire and motivate people by tapping into the values and desires people
have and finding ways to align these with the needs of the business. Using empathy and other EI
skills leaders are able to build and maintain levels of trust.
We're all finely tuned in to and aware of other people’s emotions most of the time, even if our
reading of those emotions is not 100% accurate. Leaders that forget this, and try to manipulate
situations, quickly become distrusted if people sense they're acting falsely.
Recognising the need for change
When it comes to managing change in our businesses, work or personal lives, it's important that
we are able to recognise the need for change and support the process of change.
Being a 'change catalyst' may take some effort, especially when change feels as if it's being
forced on us. The effort is worth it as building strengths in this competency is key to effective
change management.
It doesn't matter whether you're staff, middle, or senior management; if you're not able to get on
board with and support the change you're heading for resistance to change. It's essential that
leaders of change effectively communicate the need for change and demonstrate their support for
the process.
This is equally important at times when you're managing personal change. Finding ways to
adjust to the change and support it will significantly decrease personal resistance and stress.
Improving Relationship Management
So what's the best way to go about improving your relationship management?
First, realise that this is not a task you can complete overnight. As with other domains of
emotional intelligence the growth of skills is a life journey. However, there are things you can
start doing now.
Most important is building your awareness of, and skills in, the first three domains of emotional
intelligence.
Awareness of your emotions (self awareness) and being able to manage these emotions (self
regulation) are essential abilities that will support your effective management of relationships.
Imagine attempting any of the competencies of relationship management listed above if you're
always provoked by the reactions of others. I would humbly suggest that this is impossible.

10. Similarly, awareness of what other groups or individuals are feeling, and what's led to this (social
awareness) is essential as it informs the possibilities for your response or intervention. At the
very least you will have considered the best way to approach a person or group in order to
achieve the best outcome (ie. the one you want!).
BARON MODEL OF EI
The theoretical foundation of the Bar-On model
Darwin ’s early work on the importance of emotional expression for survival and adaptation
(1872/1965) has influenced the ongoing development of the Bar-On model, which both stresses
the importance of emotional expression and views the outcome of emotionally and socially
intelligent behavior in Darwinian terms of effective adaptation. Additional influence on my
thinking can be traced to Thorndike’s description of social intelligence and its importance for
human performance (1920) as well as Wechsler’s observations related to the impact of non-
cognitive and conative factors on what he referred to as “intelligent behavior” (1940, 1943).
Sifneos’ description of alexithymia (1967) on the pathological end of the ESI continuum and
Appelbaum’s conceptualization of psychological mindedness (1973) on the eupsychic end of this
continuum have also had an impact on the ongoing development of the Bar-On model.
From Darwin to the present, most descriptions, definitions and conceptualizations of emotional-
social intelligence have included one or more of the following key components: (a) the ability to
recognize, understand and express emotions and feelings; (b) the ability to understand how
others feel and relate with them ; (c) the ability to manage and control emotions; (d) the ability to
manage change, adapt and solve problems of a personal and interpersonal nature; and (e) the
ability to generate positive affect and be self-motivated.
The Bar-On model provides the theoretical basis for the EQ-i, which was originally developed to
assess various aspects of this construct as well as to examine its conceptualization. According to
this model, emotional-social intelligence is a cross-section of interrelated emotional and social
competencies, skills and facilitators that determine how effectively we understand and express
ourselves, understand others and relate with them, and cope with daily demands. The emotional
and social competencies, skills and facilitators referred in this conceptualization include the five
key components described above; and each of these components comprises a number of closely
related competencies, skills and facilitators which are described in the Appendix. Consistent with
this model, to be emotionally and socially intelligent is to effectively understand and express
oneself, to understand and relate well with others, and to successfully cope with daily demands,
challenges and pressures. This is based, first and foremost, on one’s intrapersonal ability to be
aware of oneself, to understand one’s strengths and weaknesses, and to express one’s feelings
and thoughts non-destructively. On the interpersonal level, being emotionally and socially
intelligent encompasses the ability to be aware of others’ emotions, feelings and needs, and to
establish and maintain cooperative, constructive and mutually satisfying relationships.
Ultimately, being emotionally and socially intelligent means to effectively manage personal,
social and environmental change by realistically and flexibly coping with the immediate
situation, solving problems and making decisions. To do this, we need to manage emotions so

11. that they work for us and not against us, and we need to be sufficiently optimistic, positive and
self-motivated.
The Bar-On model of ESI predicts various aspects of human performance
In addition to demonstrating that the Bar-On model is able to describe what it is meant to
describe (ESI), it must also be shown that it is capable of predicting various aspects of human
behavior, performance and effectiveness in order to argue that it represents a robust and viable
concept. The best way of doing this is to examine its predictive validity (i.e., the predictive
validity of the psychometric instrument that measures the Bar-On conceptual model).
In various publications, I have described 20 predictive validity studies to date that have been
conducted on a total of 22,971 individuals who completed the EQ-i in seven countries around the
world. These publications shed a great deal of light on the predictive validity of the EQ-i by
examining its ability to predict performance in social interactions, at school and in the workplace
as well as its impact on physical health, psychological health, self-actualization and subjective
well-being (Bar-On, 1997b, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2005; Bar-On, et al., 2005; Krivoy et al., 2000).
Based on these findings, the average predictive validity coefficient is .59, which suggests that the
Bar-On model is indeed able to predict various aspects of human performance. Summarized
below are the major findings related to the predictive ability of this conceptual and psychometric
model.
The relationship between the Bar-On model and physical health.Three studies (Bar-On, 2004;
Krivoy et al., 2000) suggest that there is a moderate yet significant relationship between ESI and
physical health.
In the first study (Krivoy at al., 2000), the EQ-i results of 35 adolescent cancer survivors were
compared with those of a control group comprising 35 randomly selected adolescents from the
local normative population sample. In addition to revealing significant differences between the
two groups with respect to overall ESI, the most powerful EQ-i subscale that was able to
distinguish between the experimental and control groups was Optimism, which is an important
facilitator of emotionally and socially intelligent behavior as was previously mentioned.
In another study conducted by me (2004), 3,571 adults completed the EQ-i and responded to the
following question: “I feel good about my health in general.” This question was meant to provide
a self-perceived assessment of physical health so that I could examine the degree to which it may
be influenced by emotional-social intelligence.(15) The results of a multiple regression analysis
rendered an overall correlation of .49.
In a recent study (Bar-On & Fund, 2004), a population sample of 2,514 male recruits in the
Israeli Defense Forces completed the EQ-i in the beginning of their tour of duty. From this
sample, 91 recruits were identified as having medical profiles indicating mild or minor health
problems that allowed them to continue to serve in the military with very few limitations. An
additional 42 recruits were found, who were shown to have more severe medical problems, yet
not severe enough to justify a medical discharge. I then randomly selected an additional group of
42 recruits from the sample (n=2,514) who did not receive a medical profile and were thus

12. considered to be physically healthy. This procedure created three groups representing three
different levels of physical health. A multiple regression analysis was applied to the data, using
the three different levels of physical health as the dependent variable and the recruits’ scores on
the 15 EQ-i subscales as the independent variables. The analysis rendered an overall correlation
of .37 suggesting a low-moderate yet significant relationship between ESI and physical health for
the sample studied.
Based on the most powerful EQ-i scales that surfaced in these studies, it appears that (a) the
ability to be aware of oneself, (b) the ability to manage emotions and handle stress, (c) the ability
to solve problems of a personal and interpersonal nature, and (d) the ability to maintain an
optimistic disposition are significantly related to physical health.
The relationship between the Bar-On model and psychological health.In one of the first studies
that examined the relationship between ESI and psychological health, the EQ-i scores of 418
psychiatric patients were compared with matched control groups in Argentina, Israel, South
Africa and the United States (Bar-On, 1997b). In addition to significant differences in overall
ESI, the EQ-i scores revealed significant differences on most of the scales between the clinical
samples and control groups.
In a more recent study, which included a sample of 2,514 males who completed the EQ-i at the
time of their induction into the Israeli Defense Forces, I identified 152 recruits who were
eventually discharged for psychiatric reasons (2003). I then randomly selected an additional
group of 152 among 241 who were diagnosed with less severe psychiatric disturbances that
allowed them to continue their tour of duty with relatively few limitations. The EQ-i scores of
these two groups were compared with a randomly selected group of 152 recruits within the same
population sample (n=2,514) who did not receive a psychiatric profile during the entire period of
their military service. This created three groups representing three different levels of
psychological health: (a) individuals who were so severely disturbed that they were incapable of
serving a full tour of duty, (b) individuals who received less severe psychiatric profiles which
allowed them to continue active military service until completion, and (c) individuals who
completed their military service without having received a psychiatric profile. A multiple
regression analysis was applied to examine the degree of impact of ESI on psychological health;
the results revealed a moderate yet significant relationship between the two (.39).
The findings from these studies suggest that the most powerful ESI competencies, skills and
facilitators that impact psychological health are (a) the ability to manage emotions and cope with
stress, (b) the drive to accomplish personal goals in order to actualize one’s inner potential and
lead a more meaningful life, and (c) the ability to verify feelings and thinking. This particular
constellation of findings makes sense, because deficiencies in these specific competencies may
lead to anxiety (an inability to adequately manage emotions), depression (an inability to
accomplish personal goals and lead a more meaningful life) and problems related to reality
testing (an inability to adequately verify feelings and thinking) respectively. It is also compelling
that such deficiencies, in one form or another, are pathognomic for most psychiatric disturbances
(American Psychiatric Association, 1994); and if not directly pathogenic, they are most likely
significant contributors to these disturbances. Moreover, tranquilizers, anti-depressants and
neuroleptics (anti-psychotics) represent three of the four major classifications of psychotropic

13. drugs that have been traditionally administered for treating these specific disturbances (Kaplan
&Sadock, 1991).
The findings presented here compare quite favorably with other ESI measures.(16)
The relationship between the Bar-On model and social interaction.In addition to a number of
older studies that have indicated a significant relationship between ESI and social interaction
(Bar-On, 1988, 1997b, 2000], a recent examination of an older dataset sheds new light on the
nature of this relationship. When the EQ-i was normed in North America (Bar-On, 1997b), 533
participants in the normative sample completed the 16PF in addition to the EQ-i. Factor H on the
16PF assesses the extent to which one seeks out friendly, genial and positive relationships with
others (Cattell et al., 1970). This factor was selected as the dependent variable, and the 15 EQ-i
subscales were selected as the independent variables; and the results of applying a multiple
regression analysis of the data suggested that ESI, as conceptualized by the Bar-On model,
relates very significantly with social interaction (.69). This strongly indicates that ESI has a
substantial impact on and can predict the nature of interpersonal interaction. These findings
compare quite favorable with those generated by other measures of ESI.(17)
The relationship between the Bar-On model and performance at school.In contrast to a study
conducted by Newsome et al. in 2000 that did not reveal a statistically significant relationship
between EQ-i scores and performance at school, four major studies conducted on much larger
samples in South Africa, Canada and the United States (Bar-On, 1997b, 2003; Parker et al.,
2004; Swart, 1996) clearly indicate that such a relationship exists. Moreover, these results
confirm that the Bar-On model is capable of identifying and predicting who will perform well at
school and who will not.
In a path analysis conducted by James Parker and his colleagues on 667 Canadian high school
students (2004), the overall degree of correlation between ESI and scholastic performance was
found to be .41 indicating a moderate yet statistically significant relationship between them. This
means that at least 17% of scholastic performance is a function of emotional-social intelligence
in addition to cognitive intelligence. These findings suggest that the Bar-On model is capable of
identifying those students who will perform well and those who will experience problems.
Findings from a study conducted on 448 university students in South Africa indicated that there
is a significant difference in ESI between successful and unsuccessful students (Swart, 1996).
These results were confirmed by an additional study conducted on 1,125 university students in
the United States, which was described by me in 1997. In both studies, the more successful
students were found to be the more emotionally and socially intelligent. More specifically, the
ability to manage one’s emotions, to be able to validate one’s feelings and to solve problems of a
personal and interpersonal nature are important for being academically successful; additionally,
academic performance appears to be facilitated by being able to set personal goals as well as to
be sufficiently optimistic and self-motivated to accomplish them.
More recently, Claude Marchessault examined the impact of EQ-i scores on the grade point
average (GPA) of 106 first-year university students in an American university (C. Marchessault,
personal communication from the 7 th of January 2005). The students completed the EQ-i in the

14. beginning of the academic year, and their GPA was calculated during the middle of the year.
Multiple regression analysis revealed a correlation of .45, which once again confirms a
significant relationship between ESI and performance in school. The students’ EQ-i scores will
be compared with their GPA at the end of the academic year as well, and the findings will later
be published.
The importance of developing and applying ESI performance models in the school setting is that
they will be helpful in identifying students who are in need of guided intervention. Comparing
the students’ EQ-i results with such performance models will provide a scientific way of
pinpointing their ESI strengths and weaknesses. Based on the results to date, the enhancement of
the weaker ESI competencies and skills is expected to increase performance at school.
The findings presented here compare quite favorably with those generated by other ESI
measures.(18)
The relationship between the Bar-On model and performance in the workplace.In six studies that
I and my colleagues have conducted, summarized and cited over the past few years (Bar-On,
1997b, 2004; Bar-On et al., 2005; Handley, 1997; Ruderman& Bar-On, 2003), the EQ-i has
demonstrated that there is a significant relationship between ESI and occupational performance.
In the first known study that directly examined the relationship between ESI and occupational
performance, the EQ-i scores of 1,171 US Air Force recruiters were compared with their ability
to meet annual recruitment quotas (Handley, 1997; Bar-On et al., 2005). Based on USAF criteria,
they were divided into those who were able to meet at least 100% of their annual quota (“high
performers”) and those who met less than 80% (“low performers”), representing a very robust
method of assessing occupational performance. A discriminant function analysis indicated that
EQ-i scores were able to fairly accurately identify high and low performers, demonstrating that
the relationship between ESI and occupational performance is high (.53) based on the sample
studied. Prior to 1996, it was costing the USAF approximately $ 3 million for an average 100
mismatches a year. After one year of combining pre-employment ESI screening with
interviewing and comparing EQ-i scores with the model for successful recruiters, they increased
their ability to predict successful recruiters by nearly threefold, dramatically reduced first-year
attrition due to mismatches and cut their financial loses by approximately 92%. Based on these
results, the US General Accounting Office submitted a Congressional Report to the Senate
Committee on Armed Services praising the USAF’s use of ESI screening (United States General
Accounting Office, 1998).
In two other studies, performance in highly stressful and potentially dangerous occupations was
studied by comparing EQ-i scores with externally rated performance for a sample of 335 regular
combat soldiers in the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) and for an additional sample of 240 soldiers
in an elite IDF unit (Bar-On et al., 2005). Both studies clearly revealed a significant relationship
between ESI and this specific type of occupational performance; the predictive validity
coefficient in the former study was .55 and .51 in the latter.
In three additional studies described by me (Bar-On, 2004; Bar-On et al., 2005), leadership was
studied by examining the relationship between EQ-i scores and peer-nomination in one study

15. (i.e., those considered to possess leadership capacity among new recruits in the IDF), criterion
group membership in another study (i.e., IDF recruits who were accepted to officer training
versus those who were not) and multi rater evaluations in the third study which was conducted at
the Center for Creative Leadership in the US (i.e., ratings on 21 different leadership criteria made
by an average of seven to eight coworkers). The results indicated, respectively, that there is a
moderate to high relationship between ESI and leadership based on the predictive validity
coefficients of .39 (n=536), .49 (n=940) and .82 (n=236) that were revealed. The third study
shows that successful leadership is based to large extent on emotional-social intelligence --
approximately two-thirds (67%) to be exact.
The average predictive validity coefficient for the six studies described above is .54, meaning
that nearly 30% of the variance of occupational performance is based on ESI as described by the
Bar-On model. When compared with Wagner’s extensive meta-analysis that revealed that
cognitive intelligence accounts for approximately 6% of occupational performance (1997), the
findings presented here suggest that EQ accounts for about five times more variance than IQ
when explaining this type of performance. The findings indicate that high performers in the
workplace have significantly higher ESI than low performers. It is interesting to note that in one
of the studies described above (Bar-On et al., 2005), the results suggest that the EQ-i was able to
predict performance quite well (.55) even over a period of 18 months.
The findings described here suggest that the most powerful ESI contributors to occupational
performance are: (a) the ability to be aware of and accept oneself; (b) the ability to be aware of
others’ feelings, concerns and needs; (c) the ability to manage emotions; (d) the ability to be
realistic and put things in correct perspective; and (e) the ability to have a positive disposition.
Based on the findings presented here, the EQ-i compares quite favorable with other ESI
measures in predicting occupational performance.(19)
The relationship between the Bar-On model and self-actualization.Self-actualization is the
process of striving to actualize one’s potential capacity, abilities and talents. It requires the
ability and drive to set and achieve goals, and it is characterized by being involved in and feeling
committed to various interests and pursuits. Self-actualization is thought to be a life-long effort
leading to an enriched and meaningful life. It is not merely performance but an attempt to do
one’s best.
In a reexamination of an older dataset used in my doctoral research (1988), I recently ran a
multiple regression analysis to study the impact of ESI competencies, skills and facilitators on
self-actualization. A subset of 67 South African university students were identified within the
dataset who concomitantly completed an earlier version of the EQ-i and the Personal Orientation
Inventory (Shostrom, 1974) which is a popularly used measure of self-actualization. The I Scale,
which captures 85% of the POI’s items, was designated the dependent variable while the EQ-i
subscale scores were identified as the independent variables. The results indicated that ESI
significantly impacts self-actualization (.64).
Three additional studies have also examined this relationship (Bar-On, 2001). Large samples
were studied in the Netherlands (n=1,639), Israel (n=2,702) and North America (n=3,831). The

16. results from these studies confirm the South African study indicating that ESI strongly impacts
self-actualization with multiple regression correlations reaching .78, .75 and .80 for the Dutch,
Israeli and American samples respectively. It is equally interesting to note that the relationship
between cognitive intelligence(20) and self-actualization for the Israeli sample (.02) and the
Dutch sample (.08) was not statistically significant (Bar-On, 2001). This means that it is
emotional-social intelligence much more than cognitive intelligence that influences one’s ability
to do one’s best, to accomplish goals and to actualize one’s potential to its fullest. Evidently a
high IQ does not guarantee that one will actualize one’s potential, but a high EQ is definitely
more important in this respect.
A very similar model surfaced in each of the above-mentioned studies regarding the ability of
ESI to predict self-actualization. In addition to being sufficiently motivated to set and accomplish
personal goals, self-actualization depends, first and foremost, on a deep sense of self-awareness
and understanding of who one is, what one wants to do, can do and enjoys doing. Self-
actualization also depends upon good problem solving for making sound independent decisions
regarding what one wants to do, and then being assertive enough to follow through with these
personal decisions. Additionally, one must be optimistic and positive to more fully actualize
one’s potential and lead a more meaningful life based on the findings of these studies.
The relationship between the Bar-On model and subjective well-being.In a recent study (Bar-On,
2005), it has been demonstrated that ESI, as conceptualized by the Bar-On model, also impacts
subjective well-being. Well-being was defined in this study as a subjective state that emerges
from a feeling of satisfaction (a) with one’s physical health and oneself as a person, (b) with
one’s close interpersonal relationships, and (c) with one’s occupation and financial situation. A
measure of subjective well-being was constructed from nine questions that directly tap these
three areas. On a large North American sample (n=3,571), the relationship between ESI and
well-being was examined with multiple regression analysis. The results indicate that the two
constructs are highly correlated (.76). Based on the four highest ESI predictors of well-being, it
appears that the following competencies, skills and facilitators contribute the most to this
subjective state: (a) the ability to understand and accept one’s emotions and oneself, (b) the
ability to strive to set and achieve personal goals to enhance one’s potential, and (c) the ability to
verify one’s feelings and put things in their correct perspective.
These findings are substantially higher than those generated by other ESI measures.(21)
The findings presented here suggest that the Bar-On model is a better predictor of human
performance than the other existing models, especially when compared with the “ability model”
as some have assumed was the case (Matthews et al., 2002). It also appears to predict a wider
range of performance than the other ESI models based on the current literature (e.g., Geher,
2004).
What is the Role of Emotional Intelligence in Business Today and in the
Future?
It's likely that emotional intelligence is going to continue to become even more important in the
business world in the future than it is today. As the baby boomer population approaches

17. retirement age, companies are going to find themselves dealing with labor shortages the likes of
which have never been seen before.
In an economy characterized by scarce labor, it's going to become increasingly important to hold
on to the good employees. At the same time, competition for the best employees is going to
become even more fierce, and good workers who feel they aren't treated fairly at work will have
an easy time finding employment elsewhere.
The best way to hold on to the employees that you want to keep is to incorporate emotional
intelligence into your personal and organizational management philosophy. Managers and
business owners can't let themselves lose sight of the fact that their employees are people, with
real lives and emotions that impact how they think, feel, and act. Managers with emotional
intelligence understand that their staff members are people first and workers second. This
understanding guides how the best managers treat their employees at all times.
EQ Competencies that Correlate to Workplace Success
The following outlines a set of five emotional intelligence competencies that have proven to
contribute more to workplace achievement than technical skills, cognitive ability, and standard
personality traits combined.
Social Competencies—Competencies that Determine How We Handle Relationships
Intuition & Empathy. Our awareness of others' feelings, needs, and concerns. This competency is
important in the workplace for the following reasons.
Understanding others: an intuitive sense of others' feelings and perspectives, and showing an
active interest in their concerns and interests
Customer service orientation: the ability to anticipate, recognize, and meet customers' needs
People development: ability to sense what others need in order to grow, develop, and master
their strengths
Leveraging diversity: cultivating opportunities through diverse people
Political Acumen & Social Skills.Our adeptness at inducing desirable responses in others. This
competency is important in the workplace for the following reasons.
Influencing: using effective tactics and techniques for persuasion and desired results
Communication: sending clear and convincing messages that are understood by others
Leadership: inspiring and guiding groups of people
Change catalyst: initiating and/or managing change in the workplace
Conflict resolution: negotiating and resolving disagreements with people
Building bonds: nurturing instrumental relationships for business success
Collaboration and cooperation: working with coworkers and business partners toward shared
goals

18. Team capabilities: creating group synergy in pursuing collective goals
Personal Competencies—Competencies that Determine How We Manage Ourselves
Self Awareness.Knowing one's internal states, preferences, resources, and intuitions. This
competency is important in the workplace for the following reasons.
Emotional awareness: recognizing one's emotions and their effects and impact on those around
us
Accurate self-assessment: knowing one's strengths and limits
Self-confidence: sureness about one's self-worth and capabilities
Self Regulation.Managing one's internal states, impulses, and resources. This competency is
important in the workplace for the following reasons.
Self-control: managing disruptive emotions and impulses
Trustworthiness: maintaining standards of honesty and integrity
Conscientiousness: taking responsibility and being accountable for personal performance
Adaptability: flexibility in handling change
Innovation: being comfortable with an openness to novel ideas, approaches, and new
information
Self Expectations& Motivation.Emotional tendencies that guide or facilitate reaching goals. This
competency is important in the workplace for the following reasons.
Achievement drive: striving to improve or meet a standard of excellence we impose on
ourselves
Commitment: aligning with the goals of the group or organization
Initiative: readiness to act on opportunities without having to be told
Optimism: persistence in pursuing goals despite obstacles and setbacks
Emotional Intelligence's Impact on the Bottom Line
To date, many companies have focused their selection criteria and training programs on hard
skills (e.g., technical expertise, industry knowledge, education) and the assessment of personality
traits. Topics including competencies like stress management, assertiveness skills, empathy, and
political/social acumen were never measured in the selection process or focused on in training
and development programs. In reality, these are critical success factors that should not be
dismissed, and have a direct impact on the bottom line.