Emotional intelligence: definition and example
Emotional intelligence (EI, often called EQ) is the capacity to notice, understand, and manage emotions in yourself and other people, and to use them in thinking and action. Researchers define and measure it in different ways, so two EQ tests can be measuring quite different things.
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Where the term comes from
Psychologists Peter Salovey and John Mayer set out an early framework in 1990, describing emotional intelligence as a set of skills: appraising and expressing emotion in yourself and others, regulating emotion, and using feelings to plan and act (Salovey and Mayer, 1990). Mayer, Caruso, and Salovey later restated this as a mental ability for reasoning about emotions (Mayer, Caruso, and Salovey, 2016). The shorthand "EQ" is common in everyday use, even though EI is not a quotient in the IQ sense.
Three ways researchers use the term
A review of more than 30 EI measures sorts them into ability, trait, and mixed models (O’Connor and colleagues, 2019). Ability EI treats EI as performance on problems with better and worse answers. Trait EI treats it as how you see your own emotional tendencies. A mixed model bundles emotional skills with broader qualities such as motivation or optimism. Scores from these approaches are not interchangeable.
An everyday example
Two coworkers hear that a deadline moved up a week. One notices her chest tightening, names it as worry about the client demo, and says, "I can do the demo by Friday if we cut the extra report. Can we agree on that?" Noticing, naming, and turning the feeling into a request is the kind of sequence most EI models describe, whatever they call it.
How EI shows up day to day
Most EI is visible in ordinary moments: noticing you are short-tempered because you skipped lunch, catching a colleague's worry before a deadline, or saying, "I need ten minutes before we talk about this." Habits like these can be practiced, one ordinary moment at a time.
What it does not mean
High EI is not the same as being nice, calm, or extroverted, and it is not a fixed verdict about a person. EQTiger reports descriptive 0 to 100 EQTiger scores across six dimensions for adult self-reflection; read the methodology and limitations before treating any number as a measure of who you are.
Back to the glossary or emotions A to Z, or start the free assessment for adult self-reflection. Not therapy or a mental-health screening. EQTiger does not diagnose.
Research notes
- Peter Salovey, John D. Mayer (1990). Emotional Intelligence. Imagination, Cognition and Personality, 9(3), 185-211. Presents a framework for emotional intelligence as a set of skills for accurately appraising and expressing emotion in oneself and others, regulating emotion in oneself and others, and using feelings to motivate, plan, and achieve. Limits: theory paper. doi.org/10.2190/DUGG-P24E-52WK-6CDG
- John D. Mayer, David R. Caruso, Peter Salovey (2016). The Ability Model of Emotional Intelligence: Principles and Updates. Emotion Review, 8(4), 290-300. Mayer, Caruso, and Salovey restate their ability model, which treats emotional intelligence as a mental ability for reasoning about emotions, and place it among other personal and social intelligences. doi.org/10.1177/1754073916639667
- Peter J. O’Connor, Andrew Hill, Maria Kaya, Brett Martin (2019). The Measurement of Emotional Intelligence: A Critical Review of the Literature and Recommendations for Researchers and Practitioners. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 1116. A critical review of more than 30 emotional intelligence measures that explains the difference between ability, trait, and mixed models and gives guidance on choosing a measure for a purpose. doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01116
Related
- No. 01EQ glossaryThe words behind emotional intelligence, defined.
- No. 02Ability EIAbility emotional intelligence (ability EI) is the view that EI is a mental ability: how well you perceive, understand, use, and manage emotions when solving actual problems.
- No. 03Trait EITrait emotional intelligence (trait EI) is a set of emotion-related self-perceptions and dispositions: how you see your own ability to notice, express, and manage feelings.
- No. 04Mixed model of EIA mixed model of emotional intelligence combines emotional skills with broader personal qualities, such as motivation, optimism, or social confidence, under one EI label.
- No. 05Emotional Intelligence FundamentalsEmotional intelligence is the ability to perceive, use, understand and manage emotions, though the term is also used for self-rated traits and broad workplace competencies. These seven guides cover the definition, the components, how EI is measured, how it compares with IQ, common myths, how to improve, and how to read an EQ score, each with cited research and its limits.
- No. 06Emotional intelligence instruments: eight guidesEmotional intelligence instruments differ in what they ask people to do and what their scores mean. These eight guides explain named measures without reproducing test items or offering unofficial administrations. Check the exact edition, evidence, and access conditions before using a measure.
- No. 07Emotional Intelligence Test: Free EQ AssessmentExplore your emotional choices with a free 36-item assessment for adults. Get a profile summary and strongest area, then choose whether to unlock the full report.
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