Emotional intelligence (EI) is the ability of individuals to recognize their own and others' emotions, to distinguish between different feelings and to label them appropriately, to use emotional information to guide thinking and behavior, and to manage and / or adjust emotions to suit environments or achieve your goal (s).
Although the term first appeared in a 1964 article by Michael Beldoch, it gained popularity in the 1995 book with that title, written by author, psychologist and scientific journalist Daniel Goleman. Since then, Goleman's IE analysis in 1995 has been criticized within the scientific community, despite prolific reports of its utility in the popular press.
Currently there are several IE models. The original Goleman model can now be considered a mixed model combining what has subsequently been modeled separately as EI capability and EI feature. Goleman defined IE as the set of skills and characteristics that drive leadership performance. The trait model was developed by Konstantin Vasily Petrides in 2001. "It encompasses behavioral and self-perceived capacities and is measured through self-report." The capacity model, developed by Peter Salovey and John Mayer in 2004, focuses on the individual's ability to process emotional information and use it to navigate the social environment.
Studies have shown that people with high IE have higher mental health, job performance, and leadership skills, although causal relationships have not been demonstrated, and such findings are likely to be attributable to general intelligence and specific personality traits rather than emotional intelligence as a construct. For example, Goleman pointed out that EI accounted for 67% of the skills considered to be necessary for superior performance in leaders, and it mattered twice as much as technical expertise or IQ. Another research finds that the effect of EI on leadership and managerial performance is not significant when controlling for capacity and personality, and that overall intelligence correlates very closely with leadership. EI markers and methods for their development have become more coveted in the last decade. In addition, studies have begun to provide evidence to help characterize the neural mechanisms of emotional intelligence.