Emotional intelligence: New ability or eclectic traits?

Abstract

Some individuals have a greater capacity than others to carry out sophisticated information processing about emotions and emotion-relevant stimuli and to use this information as a guide to thinking and behavior. The authors have termed this set of abilities emotional intelligence (EI). Since the introduction of the concept, however, a schism has developed in which some researchers focus on El as a distinct group of mental abilities, and other researchers instead study an eclectic mix of positive traits such as happiness, self-esteem, and optimism. Clarifying what El is and is not can help the field by better distinguishing research that is truly pertinent to EI from research that is not. EI-conceptualized as an ability-is an important variable both conceptually and empirically, and it shows incremental validity for predicting socially relevant outcomes.