Effects of Emotional Intelligence Training on Emerging Staff and Student Leaders in a Collegiate Setting

This study explored the effects of emotional intelligence (EI) training on emerging staff and student leaders’ EI quotient (EQ) score. The dissertation was designed to provide training incorporating EI concepts for emerging leaders who were considering enhancing their EI skills. Currently, the EI theory is not prevalent in leadership development training curricula in either academia or corporate settings (Freedman, 2010; Gliebe, 2012; Moore, 2012). EI is a form of social intelligence that allows an individual to discern, maintain, and control his or her own and others’ emotional reactions (Mayer & Salovey, 1998). EI is measurable in the form of a quotient number known as an EQ. Previous research (Goleman, Boyatzis, & McKee, 2013; Mittal & Sindhu, 2012; Suciu, Gherhes, & Petcu, 2010) indicated a positive correlation between individuals with high EQ and their success rates as great leaders and motivators. Researchers (Deepa, 2013; Khosrovi, Manafi, Hojabri, Aghapour, & Gheshmi, 2011; Love, 2014) who conducted studies on the topic of EI revealed that, once the learner is exposed to EI training, then his or her EQ increased thus the learner had the ability to develop as an effective manager of his or her and other’s emotions, behavior, and reaction. The researcher developed an EI training based on Bar-On’s (2006) EI theory to help the participants learn more about using EI to influence positively how they managed their emotions, lives, and other’s emotions and how they made decisions. The methods that were incorporated in the training were self-paced video recordings and activities. The study included 30 participants (control group =15 participants and trained group = 15 participants) who first completed Bar-On’s (2005) Emotional Quotient Inventory assessment to measure their EQ scores (pretest) and then a reassessment (posttest). The scores were computer generated by Bar-On’s (2005) Emotional Quotient Inventory, which provided 1 total EQ score, 5 composite scores, and 15 subscale scores for all the participants. All the participants’ scores were calculated by using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test and descriptive statistics tools to test the effects of the EI training. The 15 trained participants completed a computer-generated 4-question feedback survey that was e-mailed to them. The EQ scores were examined and compared to each other: trained versus untrained. The results showed that the trained grouped had an incremental increase in their EQ score. The increase was not statistically significant except in the area of self-awareness. Self- awareness is a subscale that encompasses the importance of the participants’ ability to identify their emotions and feelings, discover their origin, and use it to form positive outcomes (Goleman, Boyatzis, & McKee, 2013)