Nyal Navales
Emotional Intelligence
PSY/301
Yulian Cordero
3/26/13
Only until recently, psychologist was able to realize the importance of Emotional Intelligence. To better understand what emotional intelligence means is to understand each word separately. What is Emotion? This can be easily found in a dictionary as so “an affective state of consciousness in which joy, sorrow, fear, hate, or the like, is experiences, as distinguished from cognitive and volitional states of consciousness.” (Dictionary.com). What is Intelligence? In layman’s terms “intelligence is a set of cognitive abilities which allow us to acquire knowledge, to learn and to solve problems.” Once that has been understood, emotional intelligence is basically the combination of the two which is “the ability to perceive emotions, to access and generate emotions so as to assist thought, to understand emotions and emotional knowledge, and to reflectively regulate emotions so as to promote emotional and intellectual growth” (Mayer & Solovey, 2007).
The reason this is such a new concept is because for a long time society’s perception of intelligence was viewed cognitively and is usually associated when talking about IQ. Cognitive intelligence is the ability to use reason and logic without feelings or emotions. It does not involve any kind of social skills but simple analytical, reading and writing skills.
It was generally believed that individuals with higher cognitive intelligence produce better performance in the work place. They are more efficient in analyzing problems. But times are changing and the appeal for emotional intelligence in the workplace is growing. In organizations, management now look for people who are not just technically inclined to be in charge, but who are also emotionally intelligent to strengthen their managerial skills and tactics. Whether in a work group or team, the team leader, whether he or she knows it or
References: Dictionary.com. (2013). Retrieved from http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/emotion Mayer, ., & Salovey, . (2007). Emotional Intelligence . Port Chester, New York: Dude Publishing.