Its definition is difficult, overall it is the measurement of the whole (relative to the individual) character of a person, but this includes social and emotional sensitivity and responsiveness as well. The best indicators of all are the interpersonal communication skills and empathy that ultimately describe emotional intelligence.
An easy way to measure how advanced our EQ may be is to see how people cope with stress or crisis situations, how they react to things and how they deal with them (e.g. – colleagues and family). The complete lack of an EQ or the vestigial presence of it is reflected in a person if, say, a manager does not show any compassion for the private lives of his employees. Suppose that a colleague had just divorced and his work performance deteriorated noticeably. The employer with an advanced EQ at this time would give them a little time and perhaps send them on a week of leave. However, the same employer with a low EQ would demand exactly the same performance from this employee as at any other time.
The EQ is not measurable in the way that the IQ is. There are numerous examples of people with a higher IQ who are working under people with a lower IQ but who have developed a higher EQ. In everyday life, we simply describe this as some people can better position themselves than the average person can.
The creators of this psychological concept, Peter Salovey and John D. Mayer, divided the EQ into four main areas : the ability to detect emotions, to deal with them, to understand their meaning and their role in thinking. Today, not incidentally, due to Salovey’s further research we now have five major categories. We are able to not only recognise and treat our own emotional states but others’ as well. In fact we are able to consciously avoid any emotional state so as to be productive and successful (see also self motivation and the flow theory).
Recent research suggests that instead of the complicated tests and artificially generated crises, there is a much simpl