Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Leadership

Emotional Intelligence (EI) is very important in leadership. It enables a leader to understand and communicate with his followers in a way that is empathetic, supportive and non-abrasive. It can be considered one of the most effective tools of a leader because it helps to create an atmosphere of trust, companionship, and teamwork. As Mandell and Pherwani (2003) point out the Intelligence Quotient is not just a matter of remembering facts or solving problems -- when it comes to leadership, one of the most needed elements of intelligence is how one a leader can relate to others -- and that takes Emotional Intelligence. However, defining EI and understanding what it means among diverse persons -- whether diverse in gender or in culture/nationality -- presents some difficulty. This paper will discuss the relation of EI to Leadership Styles according to research that has been conducted in the field.

As Quader (2011) notes, EI can be defined by five elements or qualities: "Self-Awareness, Managing Emotion, Self-Motivation, Relating Well, and Emotional Mentoring" (p. 1). Yet not all practitioners of EI and leadership have all five elements at the same time. Quader's (2011) study showed that women actually scored higher in showing the qualities of Relating Well and Emotional Mentoring. Men, on the other hand, scored higher in the other three areas. Thus, EI and gender shows correlation in terms of the type of EI that is delivered. This is helpful to remember when evaluating what EI is and what individuals should expect from leaders when it comes to EI. The gender of the leader will make a difference in the type of EI that one sees, according to Quader's (2011) study.

Moreover, the study by Van Genderen (2012) showed that across cultures, there is not the same sense of the value of EI. For instance, among Russian leaders, EI is not a correlating factor in successful leadership styles -- namely, transformational leadership. What the study of Russian leaders and EI suggests is that EI does not serve as a significant factor in strong leaders. Yet, the study also indicated that a "participative" style of leadership is preferred among Russians sampled (Van Genderen, 2012, p. 224). What this means is that Russians value a leader who participates in the work himself and is not simply dictating or delegating. The participative style is inclusive and welcomes input. It is open and communicative -- and in this sense it is supported by variables that are related to EI. From this perspective, the study could indicate that EI plays a more central role in successful leadership in the Russian culture than Russians may actually be aware. The term itself and the way it is defined in the West could be something with which they are neither familiar nor comfortable. But at root it may be just what is supporting their ideal leaders.

Even skeptics of the role of EI in leadership must admit that the value of EI has not been unsubstantiated. According to Harms and Crede (2010), EI may be an effective tool in assisting in Transformational Leadership and more studies should be performed to assess this factor. "Concerning the potential role of EI in effective leadership" studies should be careful to isolate and measure this variable (Harms, Crede, 2010, p. 12). The outcome could shed more light on how or why some leaders are effective and why others are not.

Thus, EI is a very simple concept that requires more understanding both among researchers and different cultures. At its most basic level, it is simply the ability to relate and communicate effectively in a way that uses emotions wisely. It is a mature approach to how we as human beings interact, how emotions play a part in our lives, in our decisions, and in our thinking processes. EI allows a person to take emotion into consideration over the course of planning, communicating and leading.

Therefore, it stands to reason that a leader who wants to be strong, confidant and able will also possess the ability to express EI skills. He or she will be able to anticipate how a specific type of behavior will impact people emotionally. It might be argued, for example, that some people view presidential hopeful Donald Trump as having no EI because he says words that are offensive to some groups of people. However, he also has a strong voter base and many followers precisely because of the way he communicates and the words and ideas he communicates. This suggests that he actually does have a strong EI ability: he knows what to say and how to say it in order to gain loyal followers. He is appealing to a specific type of audience in a very effective manner. It could be argued that in alienating another part of the voting base, he is not fully using EI most effectively -- and this may be true -- so the question of how to most effectively use EI is one that researchers could stand to analyze and assess in the future as well.

In conclusion, no matter how one chooses to look at it, EI and Leadership Styles have an important relationship. It may need to be examined and understood more, but the research suggests that the elements that make up EI are elements that leaders, regardless of gender and culture, try to possess. The style that a leader employs, whether transformative, participative or other, can always be accentuated by the skills associated with EI. Explaining what EI is, however, to cultures that are unfamiliar or wary of the term is something that should be performed.

References

Harms, P., Crede, M. (2010). Emotional intelligence and transformational and transactional leadership: A meta-analysis. Journal of Leadership & Organizational Studies, 17(1): 5-17.

Mandell, B., Pherwani, S. (2003). Relationship between emotional intelligence and transformational leadership style: A gender comparison. Journal of Business and Psychology, 17(3): 387-404.

Quader, M. S. (2011). Leadership style and emotional intelligence: A gender comparison.

Annamalai International Journal of Business Studies & Research, 3(1): 1 -- 23.

Van Genderen, E. (2012). Relationship between emotional intelligence and leadership

style: A comparative- gender study. Review of International Comparative Management, 13(2): 224-236.