Salovey & Mayer's Emotional Intelligence Model
Goleman's model outlines four constructs—Self-Management, Social Awareness, Self-Awareness, and Relationship Management—focused on skill sets and emotional competencies required for outstanding performance, suggesting such competencies are learned and support each other . In contrast, Bar-On's model focuses on general emotional and social competence as a predictor of potential success. It includes components like Intrapersonal, Interpersonal, Adaptability, Stress Management, and General Mood, with sub-components like self-regard and empathy, indicating a process-oriented approach that develops with time .
In Bar-On's model, adaptability encompasses reality testing, flexibility, and problem-solving, focusing on how well individuals can adjust to changes and handle stressful situations through practical solutions . Goleman's concept of self-management involves recognizing emotions and their impacts, impulse control, and navigating emotions to guide behavior and decisions effectively under stress . Both address stress and change by emphasizing personal regulation and adjustment to circumstances, but Bar-On’s model is more process-oriented, while Goleman’s focuses on competencies linked to behavioral results.
In Salovey and Mayer's model, emotional assimilation refers specifically to distinguishing between various emotions one feels and understanding those emotions influencing thinking processes . Traditional views on emotional processing often don't delineate the impact of specific emotions on cognitive processes as explicitly, typically treating emotions more as a general affective influence rather than as individually influential on reasoning and cognition.
Defining emotional intelligence as 'potential for performance' emphasizes the capabilities that can be developed rather than actual outcomes . This perspective could limit the focus on immediate practical applications and measurable results, possibly leading to underestimating the role of existing competencies in current performance assessments. Additionally, it may not fully account for other contributing factors to performance, such as motivation and contextual influences, thus suggesting a gap between potential and realized abilities.
Salovey and Mayer define emotional intelligence (EI) as an ability to process emotional information and relate it to broader cognition, manifesting itself in adaptive behaviors. Their model consists of two main areas: strategic and experimental, further divided into four branches: Emotional Perception, Emotional Assimilation, Emotional Understanding, and Emotion Management. These branches range from basic psychological processes to complex integration of cognition and emotion .
In Bar-On's model, cognitive intelligence is considered to equally contribute to a person's overall intelligence alongside emotional intelligence. This dual contribution is thought to measure the potential to be successful in life. Bar-On emphasizes that both are essential in handling environmental pressures and demands, improving problem-solving, reality testing, impulse control, and stress tolerance .
Emotional management, according to Salovey and Mayer, involves the ability to connect or disconnect from emotions depending on their usefulness in a certain situation . This skill affects personal decision-making by enabling individuals to assess whether emotional responses are beneficial or detrimental in a given context, thus allowing them to mitigate biases and make more rational decisions that align with their goals and the situational requirements.
Bar-On's view that emotional intelligence develops over time implies that individuals can enhance their emotional and social skills through deliberate programming, training, and therapy. In professional contexts, this suggests that employees can be trained to improve their emotional quotient (EQ), thereby enhancing their adaptability, stress management, and interpersonal relationships, leading to greater success in dealing with workplace challenges and fostering a more cooperative and efficient work environment .
Mayer and Salovey's model integrates emotional perception as the capability of recognizing and expressing emotions accurately and distinguishing genuine from false expressions. Emotional understanding involves comprehending complex emotions and foreseeing emotional transitions . This integration allows for a deeper cognitive processing of emotions, where accurate perception leads to better understanding, facilitating informed responses and strategic emotional management.
Goleman's emphasis on "emotional competences" highlights the learned capabilities that can improve performance, particularly in organizational settings. His model's constructs—such as self-management and relationship management—are directly applicable to managing emotions, guiding decisions, and inspiring and influencing others. This focus on competences supports training and development programs that help organizations foster leadership qualities and enhance team dynamics .