How Interpersonal Accuracy as a General Emotion Recognition Skill and as a Situation-Specific Skill Affects Interaction Outcomes

Interpersonal accuracy means accurately assess others' traits and states. Typically, this skill is measured with a general emotion recognition ability test. Some researchers have assessed it as a more situation-specific skill as it unfolds in a social interaction. The goal of the present study was to test which aspect predicts interaction outcomes best (e.g., satisfaction). In a field study, we assessed general emotion recognition accuracy of 60 general practitioners and asked them after each consultation with their patients (4 to 6 patients per doctor), to report their patients' preferences for a specific physician communication style. This was compared to the patient's actual preference to obtain a measure of situation-specific interpersonal accuracy. Patients also indicated their satisfaction, trust, and enablement. Results show that the situation-specific interpersonal accuracy was related to more positive interaction outcomes whereas the general emotion recognition skill was not