Can Emotional Intelligence be Developed?

Abstract

In Chapters 3 and 4 we introduced an overall model examining the components of EI and their potential contribution to performance in a work context. This chapter considers the feasibility of an individual being able to develop their level of EI and potential ways of doing this.

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1 Introduction

In Chapters 3 and 4 we introduced an overall model examining the components of EI and their potential contribution to performance in a work context. This chapter considers the feasibility of an individual being able to develop their level of EI and potential ways of doing this.

If, as research and assertions propose, EI is a significant differentiator (given broadly equivalent levels of IQ) in terms of ‘life success’, individual performance, and ultimately corporate success, then the question arises as to whether EI can be developed or is it a more enduring personality trait? To an extent, this question invites a review of the elusive ‘nature/nurture’ argument. Indeed, in Chapter 3 we presented examples of research that demonstrate that EI adds explanatory power beyond that of personality. It is evident that EI and personality are distinct concepts, albeit that they overlap to an extent. In this chapter we are not setting out to revisit or resolve the overall nature/nurture debate, but rather focusing on the development of EI. However, some issues do arise about the stage in an individual’s life at which interventions designed to build EI are most effective. Goleman (1996) comments that, while EI is amenable to development, it is interventions during childhood that are most effective and educational research provides the most robust evidence to support such a proposition. Building from this research and extensive case studies, the value of increasing EI ‘skills’ during childhood is promoted. However, some doubts have been raised about the effectiveness of development action at later stages in life.

In the literature that covers EI there is a strong consensus that it is a developable trait or competency and a lot of the popular literature is devoted to describing processes or programmes designed to help individuals develop their EI. In our own research we have found clear empirical evidence that supports an argument that elements of EI can be developed. In the study by Dulewicz, Higgs, and Slaski (2003) there was evidence to support the widely held belief that EI is capable of being developed. In particular, the hypothesis that the ‘Enabler’ elements of EI (see our model in Chapter 8, section 4.2), can be developed after relevant training action was borne out by the improvement of scores observed after training. The two studies without a specific EI training intervention showed less strong improvements in EI scores.

The significance of the potential value of EI within an organisational context has led to a range of discussions about its role and development within a managerial learning context. Indeed many authors point out that although the core EI capabilities are developed within childhood, these are plastic and are capable of being developed and changed. Workplace experiences also have a significant impact on this shaping process—what managers learn in an organisation includes ‘how to feel about what they do and learn’. The emotional dimension of the work of management is reflected through working experiences and practices.

2 Developing or Exploiting?

The authors’ early model of EI has been revised, in part, to take account of the empirical findings in relation to the development of EI (for further details see Dulewicz & Higgs, 2000; Higgs & Dulewicz, 2002). This resulted in the distinction between inter- and intra-personal elements shown in a revised model, which was presented in Chapter 3. Results from two further studies provide some support for the new model.

As just noted, within the overall debate on the nature of EI, there has been considerable discussion around the issue of the extent to which EI can be developed. In broad terms there is an emerging consensus that EI can be developed, but there are differing views on the extent of development possible. We had initially thought that some elements could be more readily developed than others and proposed that ‘Enablers’ are more amenable to development than ‘Constrainers’ or ‘Drivers’ but our views have changed in the light of our research evidence. In an attempt to explain our research findings on EI development we developed a ‘vessel’ analogy in an attempt to explain why some elements appear to be more amenable to development than others, which are considered to be ‘exploitable’. When thinking about development, we have suggested that a person’s capacity could be seen as a vessel containing fluid. The overall capacity of some elements, we believe, can be increased through training that extends the range of an individual’s skills.

This explains what we refer to as being ‘developable’. At the other extreme, some elements appear to be more enduring characteristics, probably formed earlier in life and so, can be seen as vessels that are fixed in size. Therefore, experience can only increase the volume of contents within the vessel, not the size of the vessel itself—this is what we mean by ‘exploiting’ one’s capacity. Based on our own research, we now believe that the seven elements lie on a development continuum ranging from: ‘easily developable, malleable’ through to ‘difficult to develop’, giving a rise to a need to exploit one’s capacity formed earlier in life.

We have found in some studies that unusual work or other experiences have encouraged some individuals to exploit their existing capacities for ‘conscientiousness’ and ‘intuitiveness’. In another study, in which managers received EI training, the results of retesting showed that some Enablers—‘self-awareness’, ‘influence’ and ‘sensitivity’ – had improved after training, as we had predicted, but so too had ‘motivation’ and ‘resilience’. Using the vessel analogy presented above, an individual’s overall capacity for ‘motivation’ and ‘resilience’ could be seen to have increased through training interventions.

Our initial view that the scores of the Drivers and Constrainers are unlikely to change over time has been supported, at least in part, by our findings. ‘Intuitiveness’ and’ conscientiousness’ did not improve after training, and so can be seen as vessels which are fixed in size—experience can only increase the volume of contents within the vessel. However, results from other studies show that . ‘intuitiveness’ and’ conscientiousness’ can be improved through experience, (e.g., team leaders, and skippers and successful crews in the Global Challenge Yacht Race, see Higgs, Dulewicz, & Cranwell-Ward, 2002). This is what ‘exploiting’ one’s capacity means. The other two elements, ‘emotional resilience’ and ‘motivation’, which we had previously considered to be only ‘Exploitable’ had also shown improvements after training and so probably lie between these two extremes. An overview of development action incorporating a continuum of ‘Develop–Exploit’ is shown in Table 5.1. Whilst further research is needed to confirm these propositions, there is certainly support for the proposition that EI can, to a certain extent, be developed. This has implications for organisations in terms of the nature and design of development activities, which we deal with in the next section. Given the evidence that EI is related to performance, it would seem reasonable to assume that organisations would be interested in devising programmes and processes designed to develop the levels of EI of their people.

Table 5.1 EI elements: The ‘Develop–Exploit’ continuum

3 An Overall Development Framework

With most personal development activities it is essential to adopt a planned approach in order to be able to sustain the activity. Fig. 5.1 provides a framework for a planned approach to developing EI.

Fig. 5.1

Development framework

The key steps in this approach are discussed below.

3.1 Step 1: Identify My Need for Development

If you completed the brief self-assessment in Chapter 4, you have already made a start on identifying some development needs. However, this is only a tentative assessment. Before investing significant time and investment of effort we recommend that you complete a structured and validated EI assessment. Given that caveat, reflecting on your own strengths and weaknesses is a useful first step in the development process. A potential format for this is shown in Table 5.2.

Table 5.2 Emotional intelligence inventory

To complete this inventory you should look back over the descriptions of the seven elements of EI in Chapters 2 and 3 and your earlier tentative self-assessment. No doubt, unless you are a truly exceptional person, you will be able to identify some strengths and weaknesses in relation to each of the elements. In doing this, note down specific examples of actions and behaviours that you believe demonstrate your strengths and weaknesses. To get the most from this exercise it is very important to be as honest with yourself as possible. The more specific you can be in describing examples the more helpful you will find them when it comes to later steps in the overall development process.

This is a valuable (even vital) first step, but it only represents your own view. If you have completed an assessment of EI (e.g., the EIQ: M) you can use the results as further evidence of your strengths and weaknesses. You may also have completed other personality questionnaires during your career (e.g., the Myers Briggs Type Inventory, the 16PF, or the OPQ). ¹ If you have, then reviewing this information will help you in building a more accurate initial inventory. At this stage, we are focusing on developing EI in a work context. A further source of help would be notes from past job performance reviews or career review discussions.

To a large extent, EI is exhibited in your interactions with other people, so you should obtain input from other people. Spend time with others you work with (e.g., colleagues, your boss, customers) reviewing your initial draft inventory and obtaining their reactions and perceptions. This not only helps you to obtain a more accurate initial inventory, but can also be a valuable development activity in its own right. If you do not feel comfortable having such discussions with work colleagues it is important to get some form of ‘independent’ perspective from another person—someone who knows you well and who you can trust from outside work (a friend, relative, partner, etc.).

The need for a third-party perspective is important throughout the development process. To help to achieve this, explain the whole process to those you are talking to and try to get one or two of them to agree to act as ‘guides’ at later stages. Given the nature of the overall development framework at least one of these ‘guides’ should know you in a work context.

3.2 Step 2: Establish Clear Development Goals

Having formulated a profile of your strengths and weaknesses in terms of EI the next important step is to determine how you would like to improve. At this stage, it is worth exploring each of the elements separately. The question you should have in mind during this exploration is:

What types of behaviour would I like to be displaying in relation to this element of emotional intelligence?

Answering this question requires more than saying ‘I would like to overcome all of the weaknesses’. You must develop a clear and inspiring picture of how you would really like to be in terms of actions and behaviours associated with each element. It is really helpful to be aspirational at this step. Think of what you would really like to be in terms of the elements rather than the level of improvement you feel you can comfortably achieve. Fig. 5.2 illustrates diagrammatically how we can achieve more growth by thinking aspirationally and adjusting to reality rather than thinking incrementally.

Fig. 5.2

Aspirational vs incremental

You should identify some ‘role models’ when developing the ‘aspirational’ picture for each of the elements. Identifying individuals who represent a really desirable set of behaviours in relation to each of the elements of EI helps to make the changes in behaviour more concrete, which you could give yourself as a target. It is unlikely that any single individual will represent a ‘role model’ for all seven elements of EI so you need to consider who, for you, represents a ‘role model’ for each element. This process of focusing on an individual is more valuable if it is someone you know, or have contact with, at work. What you are looking for at this stage is to be able to describe, in concrete terms, the actions and behaviours that you would like to be able to replicate. Although we have been focusing our discussion of EI in a work context it is possible (and perhaps desirable) to look for role models in a non-work situation. This way, we can examine the behaviours in both work and non-work contexts.

Once again the discipline of writing down your thoughts and ideas in a structured way is a valuable aid to development planning. A possible framework for this is shown in Table 5.3. Discussing your developmental goals with the ‘guide(s)’ you agreed to work with during Step 1 can help to ensure that you have been realistic and clear in describing the change you would like to achieve in the development process. The discussions with the ‘guide(s)’ are much more valuable if you are both familiar with the selected ‘role models’. Failing that, you should provide your ‘guide’ with a vivid description of your ‘role model’s’ behaviours and the reasons why you selected them to illustrate the element of EI you are considering.

Table 5.3 Development goals

When you have completed this step in the process, you should have a clear picture of ‘where you are’ and ‘where you want to be’ in terms of developing your EI.

3.3 Step 3: Establishing Priorities

On completion of Step 2, many of us are likely to be faced with a challenging agenda for personal development and change. There can be little doubt that setting out to develop EI represents a significant change initiative. To achieve success it is important that:

• you have a clear and compelling reason to change (this could either be a desire or a requirement);

• you have a clear picture of the desired end point;

• you can see and understand actions that will lead you to the desired end point; and

• you have early experience of success, which you can see moving you towards the end point.

The earlier chapters in this book, together with Steps 1 and 2, should have addressed the first two criteria. The overall development process is designed to address the third criterion (and we will return to this later). However, at the end of Step 2 we are facing a significant range of potential development needs and goals. To meet the fourth criterion, it is important to establish some development priorities. If we fail to do this then we run the risk of being ‘swamped’ by the magnitude of the task (unless we have outstanding emotional resilience) and will not implement our personal development and change process. One way of avoiding this is to establish an action priority list, which is likely to produce early results and which in turn will motivate us to sustain our efforts.

There are many ways in which a range of actions may be prioritised. However, in the context of change, prioritising in a way that produces early results is important in order to reinforce the commitment to change and thus sustain the effort. Fig. 5.3 illustrates a framework for prioritising actions in a change context, which is particularly helpful in planning to develop EI.

Fig. 5.3

Prioritising change

Having developed a picture of the development goals, each should be assessed and positioned on the matrix. Those which come out as a Low:Low should be reanalysed. These areas may not be related to the development of your EI or have been undervalued in terms of their difficulty or impact. Those that require considerable effort, but are likely to have little impact, are potential distracters. They could be revisited once everything else has been done, but should not be allowed to detract from the effort that you should be devoting to those areas that will have a notable impact on the development of your EI. The goals that require little effort, but are likely to have a high impact, tend to represent those areas of action where you are tempted to say ‘Why on earth haven’t I done something about this before?’ Focus on these at an early stage. The results will provide you with the reinforcement and motivation required for the sustained effort to address those goals that fall into the high effort, high impact quadrant. Once again discussing and testing your own analysis with your ‘guide(s)’ can be of great value in ensuring that you arrive at a realistic assessment of development priorities.

3.4 Step 4: Developing an Action Plan

Once you have a clear view of your development needs and priorities it is necessary to identify the actions that you can take to underpin and realise these goals. This takes us back to the earlier questions about the relationship between the elements of EI and their developability or necessity to exploit personal characteristics. Later sections in this chapter present development prompts and ideas that may be appropriate for each of the elements of EI. However, it is worth reflecting on the general considerations that can apply to developmental and exploiting strategies. Common to both aspects is the importance of feedback. Whether planning to develop new behaviours or exploit (and develop strategies for coping with core aspects of your personality) it is important to begin the process by considering how you manage behavioural feedback. There are two elements to this aspect of development planning:

• learning how to use and interpret feedback from others; and

• actively seeking feedback.

In formulating an action plan it is important to build in processes and frameworks for seeking and interpreting feedback.

You should encourage regular and open feedback from others on how your behaviours are being perceived and interpreted. It is only through the perceptions of others that you are able to evaluate the effectiveness of your actions in terms of achieving your goals. Thus, any action plan you formulate should include an element that shows how you will seek and gather feedback from others. Receiving feedback is important. How you evaluate and respond to this feedback can be critical. In evaluating feedback it is critical to have an open mind. You need to look for patterns in the feedback you receive in relation to your self-perceptions. In broad terms, it is necessary to look for patterns in feedback that are derived from different sources. The greater the degree of congruence of the feedback, the more likely it is to be providing a ‘true’ picture of how others perceive you. Any development plans should include processes to gather, review, evaluate and respond to feedback from others.

In broad terms, if development needs relate to ‘developable’ components of EI then your action plan should focus on learning activities. For many of the elements that fall into these categories there are a range of interventions that are well established and readily available (e.g., training programmes focusing on negotiation skills or influencing skills). Those areas requiring ‘coping’ strategies that relate to the individual’s personal characteristics are more difficult to plan for. While many of these areas can be addressed in the longer-term through psychoanalytic approaches there is little available that provides short-term results. In reality, people develop effective strategies for coping with personal shortcomings and playing to their strengths to counteract these. For example, intuitiveness (as an element of EI) is in the area of a personal characteristic. If an individual is low on this element a potential coping strategy may be to work on key decisions in a group or team context and to ensure that processes entail thorough risk assessment techniques with the formulation of clear up-front decision criteria. The combination of these two actions leads to a higher degree of comfort in arriving at a clear decision. From the above illustration it is clear that the ‘exploitable’ strategies require:

• Identification of personal areas of discomfort.

• Development of processes to examine and cover each area of discomfort.

• Achievement of a decision or action in a context different to that of discomfort.

The range of specific actions for each development goal needs to be considered in terms of:

• What has to be achieved?

• What do I need to do?

• What resources/support do I need to enable me to do this?

• How long will it take to achieve meaningful results?

Developing an effective action plan is helped by formalising it and discussing it with others. A possible format for an action plan is shown in Table 5.4. Once again, considerable value can be obtained from discussing and reviewing the action plan with your ‘guide(s)’. In a work context, it is important to review and discuss the action plan with those who need to support you or provide resources (particularly your immediate boss).

Table 5.4 Action plan

3.5 Stage 5: Implement Actions

This stage requires that you implement those actions to which you committed. This is the stage that requires personal commitment. The relationship you have established with your ‘guide(s)’ can be helpful at this stage. In developing the ‘guide’ relationship, it can be particularly helpful to empower your ‘guide(s)’ to challenge and question you or your progress in implementing your agreed actions.

3.6 Stage 6: Monitor and Review

It is very important to continue the process of self-analysis and the regular gathering and review of feedback on your actions and behaviours in order to evaluate the effectiveness of your development actions. You should actively seek feedback from all your sources to track how your development initiatives have led to real changes in your behaviours.

The feedback from this review should be used not only to check on the effectiveness of your development actions, but also to help you to formulate a further development plan.

4 Development Ideas

4.1 General Development Ideas

The nature of EI is such that it is possible to enhance the overall level by planned and sustained personal development. Much of this development will result from the individual reflecting on the behaviours you tend to exhibit in differing situations, consciously practising different behaviours and actively seeking feedback on the way in which others interpret and respond to these new behaviours.

In broad terms it is important to reflect on how the feedback might apply in a range of situations that you have faced and to recapture and reflect on these. When reviewing your feedback, and to identify development ideas, it is useful to think about a recent situation or decision and to consider the following questions:

• What were your feelings in this situation?

• How did you feel about the outcomes of your actions?

• How could the outcomes have been improved in terms of the solution of the problem/situation?

• How could the outcomes have been improved in terms of your feelings?

• What have you learned from this situation which could help you in dealing with future issues?

Within this overall approach it is important that you examine each of the EI scales and identify those where:

• you have strengths that may be developed and generalised and

• there are specific opportunities for improvement.

The following sections provide some general questions and thoughts to help you develop behaviours that will enhance your performance in relation to each of the elements of EI.

4.2 Ideas for Developing and Exploiting the Seven Elements

4.2.1 Self-awareness

In examining the self-awareness scale it is important to be reflective in terms of behaviour. You may be helped by the following prompts.

Reflect on specific situations/problems which you have faced:

• How did you feel?

• What concerned you?

• What excited you?

• How did the reactions of others affect your feelings?

• How did you decide your actions?

• How consciously did you take account of your feelings and emotions?

• How would your responses and actions have been different if you had been aware of them?

Based on this reflection, how can you improve your reactions and solutions in the future?

4.2.2 Emotional Resilience

Thoughts and ideas which can be helpful in exploiting emotional resilience include:

• Reflect on how you adapt your behaviours to deal with different situations.

• Develop an understanding of how decisions are made and the balance between objective certainty and the need to arrive at judgements based on a balance of probabilities.

• Identify situations presenting difficult decision options and reflect on behaviours you adopted in such situations that led to successful outcomes.

• When faced with challenge spend time openly exploring the reason for it and seek opportunities to learn from such discussions.

• Actively seek opportunities to involve others in exploring solutions to difficult problems or situations.

4.2.3 Motivation

It is difficult to approach motivation in the same way as other areas of behaviour. It is important that you understand your own motivation and develop strategies to exploit this. The following prompts may be helpful.

• Develop a clear understanding of results and goals relating to the work situations and problems you find.

• Analyse potential for personal satisfaction and benefits that would flow from effective solution of problems.

• Reflect on situations in which you have felt a high degree of personal motivation and identify elements that may be transferred to other situations and/or generalised as work behaviours.

• Identify/build a clear picture of your personal goals/aims and establish ways in which work situations may support their achievement. Discuss your analysis with a mentor or ‘uninvolved’ third party.

4.2.4 Interpersonal Sensitivity

While there are a range of interventions that can be effective in building interpersonal sensitivity, it is important for you to identify actions that can be readily undertaken in a work context. Ideas to explore include:

• Spend time discussing problems and situations with team members, invite their comments and spend time reflecting on how their comments throw light on the problem.

• Make active use of a mentor to discuss work problems or situations and your interpretations of them, and of your preferred solutions on those you work with. In developing a plan or course of action, spend time reflecting on how your ideas may be perceived by those involved with or supported by the action.

• Reflect on situations in which you feel that you have really achieved ‘buy-in’ for others and identify ways in which you can generalise the behaviours you exhibited.

• Spend time listening to others; begin by posing a problem or outlining a situation and asking for their input before presenting your view.

Use questions or interaction with others rather than making statements

• How much time do you spend on getting to know your co-workers and how actively do you attempt to bring their reactions to bear in understanding your own motives and actions?

4.2.5 Influence

As with interpersonal sensitivity there are a range of established development interventions or courses that can assist in building influencing skills. However, it can be helpful to use the following prompts to help you think about actions to develop your behaviours in this area.

• Spend time understanding the perspectives of others.

• Examine issues, problems and situations, and hypothesise what they might be like from the perspective of Mr X, Ms Y, etc.

• What do others need from their job, relationships with me, etc.?

• Reflect on how well I understand those I am working with.

4.2.6 Intuitiveness

Developing intuitiveness raises similar issues to those mentioned in connection with motivation. Some ideas that can help you to develop strategies to exploit your intuitiveness are:

• Develop an understanding of how you can assess and manage risks in decision making.

• Reflect on decisions that you have made in difficult situations and consider how alternative decisions may have ‘played out’ in practice.

• Spend time discussing complex decisions with others involved with, or impacted by, them.

• Consider how further information would have impacted on past decisions.

• When faced with difficult decisions reflect on options and potential improvements resulting from further analysis before undertaking the analysis.

• Develop an understanding of the processes of arriving at business decisions.

4.2.7 Conscientiousness

This element reflects a core trait and requires you (as with intuitiveness) to exploit your level of conscientiousness. Ideas and prompts to use in reflecting on this element include:

• Obtain feedback from others to establish the requisite level of consistency between what you say and what you do.

• Only openly commit to goals and decisions that you feel are important and can be delivered.

• Identify how others judge your commitment to decisions and actions.

• Establish a clear and rigorous approach to establishing priorities and ensure that you apply this in practice.

• Ensure that you create time to deliver your contribution to high priority actions.

The above suggestions have a strong focus on what should be examined in relation to the development of each of the seven elements of EI, but only touch on the question of ‘how’ very briefly. However, the development of EI is, in our view, best approached as a part of a process of personal development. In this context we feel that the keys to development relate to the willingness to undertake a sustained development process rather than seeking a ‘quick fix’. This in turn requires that the individual undertaking the development is willing and motivated to change and to take ownership of the development process and its direction. The framework described earlier in the chapter, we believe, helps the individual to do this. However, if you want to undertake the development of your EI you can benefit (and indeed probably need support) from others. The areas in which you are likely to need support are:

• Obtaining feedback: Try to ensure that you can work with an individual whose opinions and views you trust, and explain your goals to them. Then ask them to provide you with honest and open feedback on the extent to which you are exhibiting the behaviours you seek to develop.

• Keeping on track: Most of us have experienced the initial enthusiasm of starting on the process of implementing a New Year’s resolution. Equally most of us have relapsed. A common resolution is to lose weight, yet research suggests that fewer than 5 % of individuals who undertake a diet maintain their weight loss. This statistic changes significantly when individuals are confronted with the consequences of relapses in their plan (hence the success of organisations such as Weight Watchers and, even more significantly, Alcoholics Anonymous). The lesson from this is to set in place mechanisms to prevent relapse. Again the use of a trusted mentor or guide can help you with this.

• Practice: In any behaviour change process it is essential to practise new behaviours. In developing EI it is important to find a range of situations in which you can practice the targeted behaviours you want to change. Try to ensure that you select situations from which you can obtain feedback, since practice without feedback does little to help in building new behaviours.

• Monitor and evaluate change: Look for ways of evaluating the extent to which you have been successful in making the changes you set out to achieve. This can be by means of informal feedback or (after say six to twelve months) retaking an EI assessment to monitor the extent to which your rating on the elements you set out to change have been successful.

4.3 Is There a Course?

In working with individuals and organisations on the assessment of EI and its development we have often been confronted with questions such as:

We hear what you say about no ‘quick fixes’, but there must be a course we can attend to help us. Which one is it?

We genuinely cannot answer this question. The sheer popularity and high profile of the topic has spawned a myriad of courses and seminars claiming either to build EI or at least to contribute to its development. It is beyond the scope of this book (and our legal expenses insurance!) to comment on specific courses and their claims. However, it is worth emphasising that a number of the elements of EI are amenable to specific skill development that may be helped by a training course (e.g., influencing skills). However, other elements that can be developed may be assisted by broader-based training programmes. For example, the relatively recent growth in training Neuro Linguistic Programming (NLP) appears to be relevant to the development of EI. Exploring NLP training as a specific tool it is worth reflecting on a definition of NLP provided by Joseph O’Connor and John Seymour (1990).

the art and science of excellence, derived from studying how top people in different fields obtain their outstanding results.

The resonance between this definition and the view of the significance of EI as a determinant of success indicates that NLP training could be very helpful in building EI. Indeed further investigation into what NLP explores and develops shows the importance of:

• motivation;

• self-awareness;

• interpersonal sensitivity;

• emotional resilience; and

• influence.

These linkages are summarised in Table 5.5.

Table 5.5 NLP concepts and emotional intelligence elements

Although NLP training is clearly a valuable tool in developing EI it does not represent a ‘quick fix’. Building NLP skills requires sustained effort to achieve personal development goals and thus may be seen as aligned to EI in its developmental philosophy.

A training ‘approach’ or ‘model’ somewhat older than NLP is that of Transactional Analysis (TA). ² TA is built on a Freudian model of communication. At its heart, the TA model examines the breakdown of communications resulting from ‘crossed transactions’. This means that one individual is engaging in a transaction in one ‘mental state’ while the other responds from another. The initial work on TA was carried out in the world of group therapy, by exponents such as Eric Berne and Thomas Harris. They identified that in interacting with others we use one of three ‘mental states’. These they labelled as Parent, Adult and Child. The three states correspond directly to Freud’s Id, Ego and Super-Ego; with Id being the Child, Ego the Adult and Super-Ego the Parent. In broad terms TA training is designed to help individuals develop effective transactions by minimising (through self-awareness and awareness of others) ‘crossed transactions’ and raising interactions to the complementary Adult to Adult level. TA training addresses the EI elements of interpersonal sensitivity, self-awareness and influence. However, as with NLP, TA training requires a sustained approach to personal development rather than a ‘quick fix’.

From the brief descriptions of two major established training frameworks it is evident that, while they can address a significant component of the development of EI, they also share a common view that change will result from personal development, which requires sustained effort.

5 Conclusion

By this stage we have, hopefully, shown that EI is an important factor that impacts a wide range of important outcomes in today’s work context. There is evidence that it is becoming an increasingly important factor in the arena of leadership in our increasingly complex organisations.

This chapter has hopefully provided the reader with reassurance that much of EI is capable of development. Equally, it should have provided the reassurance (or possible concern!) that there is no instant transformation available through a ‘quick fix’ course, which people aren’t telling you about. If you really are motivated to develop your EI you can do it, but you need to recognise that such a development is part of your overall development. The first step on the journey to build your EI is a genuine recognition of the need combined with the genuine desire to improve. Once you have made the first step you will be able to manage the subsequent ones.

In the next chapter we will explore the nature of leadership in today’s environment and how EI becomes increasingly important as our understanding of the nature of effective leadership has developed.

Notes

• 1. See Chapter 3 for reference to the authors EI assessment tools. Other p sychometric assessment tools referred to are:

  The MBTI—for further details see, Myers, I. B., & McCaulley, M. H. (1989). A guide to the development and use of the MyersBriggs type indicator. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press.

  The 16 PF—for further details see, Cattell, R. B., Eber, H. W., & Tatsuoka, M. M. (1970). Handbook for the 16PF. Savoy, IL: IPAT;

  The OPQ—for further details see, Saville, P., Holdsworth, R., Nyfield, G., Cramp, L., & Mabey, W. (1993). Occupational personality questionnaire manual. Esher: SHL.

• 2. For an overview of Transactional Analysis, see, Berne, E. (1968). Games people play. Harmsworth, UK: Penguin Books.