Emotional Intelligence: Impact on Business Success

MN3041QA

Development for Success in Business

Assignment 3: Literature Review

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Introduction

This report is aimed at reviewing the research done on the topic “Emotional Intelligence”. This is a term which has been coined in 1990 and this makes it a relatively new concept. This term was first described as a form of intelligence that allows a person to monitor their thoughts and feelings and use this information to channelise the thinking process towards increased productivity. Since then, the research about this topic has been escalated very quickly and the literature has become rich about emotional intelligence.

Emotional intelligence is the ability to overcome the power of emotions and take the most appropriate decision as per the situation. It has been believed that emotions can make a person weak and stop them to think rationally. Emotional intelligence is the way that helps humans to overcome this issue and reach an unbiased conclusion. This report will cover mainly the importance of Emotional Intelligence in a person’s life and society and its impact on the business organisation. The key importance of EI will be highlighted in this literature review by reviewing some journal articles on emotional intelligence.

Literature Review on Emotional Intelligence

Emotional intelligence

Emotional intelligence (EI), which is also known as emotional quotient (EQ), is the ability to understand and manage one’s own emotions to overcome some challenges and defuse some conflicts. This is the ability to perceive and express emotions intelligently and smartly (Kotsou, et. al. 2019). EI is commonly defined by five attributes or characteristics which include self-awareness, awareness of others, self-regulation, and relationship management (Nguyen, et al. 2019). These are the principles that mainly guide emotional intelligence.

Importance of EI

Emotional intelligence is very beneficial for any person or organisation to function efficiently. This can bring performance-based improvement to a person or entity (Kotsou, et. al. 2019). High emotional intelligence allows a person to communicate with society with ease and deal the complexity. This makes the society communicate effectively without any interruption from emotional weakness.

Other than easing communication, EI is also helpful in enhancing the mental health of a human being. Emotional intelligence helps people to manage excess emotions and reduce emotional stress which leads to improved mental health. This improved mental health also leads to improved physical health and thus increases the overall productivity of a person.

Improved mental health helps humans to maintain good relations with others and thus keep harmony in society (Safarli, 2021). This harmony is very necessary to smoothly run a large society, like this world. Emotional intelligence does not help benefit society by making a person aware of their thoughts, but it also helps people in creating awareness about the thought process and not just the thoughts. This awareness of the thought process is called metacognition which shows a person’s strong mental capabilities (Heyes, et. al. 2020). Thus, EI is not just important to improve a person’s thoughts but also the entire society because of one’s influence.

Impact of EI on business organisation

Numerous benefits of emotional intelligence have been stated earlier, but this is not only important in a particular person’s life or society but also bring effectiveness in the functioning of a business. EI impact the business in a highly positive way. EI supports positive company culture which is one of the highest demanding things in the corporate culture. This positive culture attracts more employees and increases the workforce of the company. Increased number of employees, in turn, results in increased productivity of the company which is the ultimate aim of most businesses. An effective application of emotional intelligence also leads to a collaborative environment for the employees and make them feel safe in the organisation (Cole, et al. 2018). Since it increases collaboration, it reduces conflicts among employees and other professionals. A correct application of emotional intelligence can resolve conflicts and maintain harmony in the business organisation.

One of the most important impacts of EI on the business organisation is that it increases the capabilities of a leader and thus enhance the aspect of business leadership (Mari?, et. al. 2018). Effective leadership is very necessary for the business to succeed and lead the competitive market. The leader of the business is the one who is mainly responsible for the success or failure of the organisation. Thus, if the leader is effective and emotionally intelligent then it will enhance the overall performance of the entire organisation.

Conclusion

Emotional intelligence is the ability of a person to control their emotions and drive them to bring positive results in society. It has been seen as a positive aspect for any business to grow and develop in all aspects. This report has discussed the concept of emotional intelligence and its importance in a person’s life for a better society. The importance of emotional intelligence to a business organisation was also highlighted. The key findings of this report were that emotional intelligence is a very beneficial tool for any organisation to get a competitive advantage in the market. The research has been shown that there are numerous benefits of EI if it is effectively applied in the functioning of the organisation. The key importance of this practice, as highlighted in the report, include effective leadership, increased productivity, better social life, etc.

The research has also shown that if emotional intelligence is practised by someone with wrong intentions, it can lead to the manipulation of the other’s thoughts and this is one of the major drawbacks of this tool. The literature does not provide any specific solution to this problem and this can be considered as a limitation of this research. This is also a future recommendation for those who are conducting research relating to this topic. The researcher can further continue to research how to manage this risk posed by those with wrong intentions. There are some more areas where emotional intelligence can pose threat to human thinking, and those areas also need to be identified.

Word count: 982

Reference

Cole, M.L., Cox, J.D. and Stavros, J.M., 2018. SOAR as a mediator of the relationship between emotional intelligence and collaboration among professionals working in teams: Implications for entrepreneurial teams. SAGE Open, 8(2), p.2158244018779109. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/2158244018779109

Heyes, C., Bang, D., Shea, N., Frith, C.D. and Fleming, S.M., 2020. Knowing ourselves together: The cultural origins of metacognition. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 24(5), pp.349-362. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1364661320300590

Kotsou, I., Mikolajczak, M., Heeren, A., Grégoire, J. and Leys, C., 2019. Improving emotional intelligence: A systematic review of existing work and future challenges. Emotion Review, 11(2), pp.151-165. https://dipot.ulb.ac.be/dspace/bitstream/2013/224731/3/10.1177_1754073917735902.pdf

Mari?, I., Kova?, J. and Habek, L., 2018. The importance of emotional intelligence for authentic leadership style. ENTRENOVA-ENTerprise REsearch InNOVAtion, 4(1), pp.292-299. https://hrcak.srce.hr/file/365111

Nguyen, T., White, S., Hall, K. and Bell, R., 2019. Emotional intelligence and managerial communication. American Journal of Management, 19(2), pp.54-63. https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Reginald-Bell-4/publication/334593926_Emotional_Intelligence_and_Managerial_Communication/links/5d361c844585153e59196485/Emotional-Intelligence-and-Managerial-Communication.pdf

Safarli, E., 2021. The Importance of Emotional Intelligence in Interpersonal Relationships: A Study on Pilots in the Context of Daniel Goleman’s Emotional Intelligence Model. International Journal of Business and Economic Studies, 3(Human Resources Management Special Issue), pp.76-90. https://dergipark.org.tr/en/download/article-file/1746626