How to evaluate emotional intelligence?

The concept of emotional intelligence was born at a time when psychologists understood that We can hardly separate emotions from our decision-making process. In fact, their recognition meant betting on them to make better decisions.

What is emotional intelligence?

Mayer and Salovey (1997) define emotional intelligence as the ability to perceive and express emotions, assimilate them in thought, understand and reason with them, and regulate them. The basic components of this definition are the following:

Perception and expression of emotions: consists of identifying and expressing emotions, feelings and thoughts. Assimilate emotion into thinking: using emotions to enhance thinking in productive ways. Understanding and analyzing emotion: labeling emotions and understanding the associations of emotions. them with the changes they produce.Reflexive regulation of emotion: reflect, monitor and regulate emotions.

emotional intelligence It helps us direct our sensitivity in a direction favorable to our interests and those of the people we love.. Likewise, it allows us to defer gratifications and regulate our own moods. It also helps us prevent anxiety from affecting our rational faculties and enables us to empathize and trust other people (Goleman, 1995).

This type of intelligence is not only made up of a set of emotional skills, it is also made up of other types of skills such as cognitive and behavioral skills (Gallego, as cited in Dueñas, 2002). Among the cognitive ones we can find the following:

Know how to read and interpret social indicators. Recognize one’s own weaknesses and strengths. Understand the feelings of others and respect individual differences. Develop realistic hopes about oneself.

Regarding behavioral skills we can find the following:

Resist negative influences.Listen to others.Participate in positive peer groups.Respond effectively to criticism.Communicate with others through other non-verbal channels, gestures, tone of voice, facial expression, etc.

The evaluation of emotional intelligence

Next, we will present some instruments that, according to these researchers, offer levels of reliability and validity that support their use in psychological evaluation processes:

Trait Meta-Mood Scale (TMMS)

This instrument is adapted to Spanish by Fernández-Berrocal, Extremera and Ramos (2004). Evaluates the intrapersonal aspects of emotional intelligence and is composed of three dimensions:

Pay attention to feelings. Level of belief about emotional focus.Emotional clarity. Subjective perception of one’s own emotions.Repair of emotions. Belief of being able to interrupt and regulate negative emotional states and enhance positive ones.

Schutte Self Report Inventory (SSRI)

This inventory is adapted and validated into Spanish by Chico (1999). Includes intrapersonal and interpersonal aspects and is composed of 33 items with a 5-point Likert-type response format. It is intended for adolescents and adults in the general population between 17 and 25 years old and is made up of four factors:

Perception emotional. The assessment of one’s own emotions and those of others is measured.Management of one’s own emotions. Evaluate self-control.Managing the emotions of others. It refers to the ability to understand and help others through the perception of their own emotions.Use of emotions. Analyzes the use of one’s own emotions as a means of self-motivation.

Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i)

This inventory is made up of 133 items that evaluate the five components of emotional intelligence. Completing the record can take about 30 minutes, and results in an overall score, a score for the five components, and an estimated score for 15 subscales. The components to measure are the following:

Intrapersonal intelligence. It is made up of the skills of emotional self-awareness, personal self-esteem, assertiveness, self-actualization and independence.Intelligence interpersonal. It is made up of the subdimensions of empathy, interpersonal relationships and social responsibility.Adaptation. Values ​​flexibility and the ability to improvise in the face of unexpected circumstances that can have a significant emotional impact.Stress management. Assesses the ability to tolerate stress and impulse control.General humor. They address the subdimensions of happiness and optimism.

Emotional Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ)

This questionnaire is adapted to Spanish by Cabello, Ruiz-Aranda, Salguero and Castillo (2009). It has 10 items that evaluate emotional regulation. The Spanish version is intended for the Spanish population between 18 and 70 years of age. This test consists of two subdimensions:

Suppression emotional. It evaluates the way to modulate the emotional response – which includes the inhibition of the expression of emotional behaviors.Cognitive reappraisal. It tries to assess a form of cognitive change related to the construction of a new emotional situation that improves the person’s emotional state.

Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT)

This test is adapted to Spanish by Extremera and Fernández-Berrocal (2002). The MSCEIT is made up of 141 items. These measure the four aspects of the original Mayer and Salovey model:

Perceive emotions effectively.Use emotions to facilitate thinking.Understanding emotions.Manage emotions.

In conclusion, Emotional intelligence is a multidimensional skill that has mainly been evaluated through questionnaires, scales, inventories, etc.. With them we have sought to determine to what extent this intelligence is present in people’s lives.

Knowing this is important to propose clinical, educational or work interventions that stimulate and improve people’s emotional skills in different contexts.

You might be interested…