Emotional intelligence (EI) is defined as the ability to perceive, use, understand, manage, and handle emotions. People with high emotional intelligence can recognize their own emotions and those of others, use emotional information to guide thinking and behavior, discern between different feelings and label them appropriately, and adjust emotions to adapt to environments.
Although the term first appeared in 1964, it gained popularity in the 1995 bestselling book Emotional Intelligence by science journalist Daniel Goleman. Goleman defined EI as the array of skills and characteristics that drive leadership performance. Some researchers suggest that emotional intelligence can be learned and strengthened, while others claim it is an inborn characteristic.
Resources on Appropedia[edit | edit source]
- Introduction to Emotional Intelligence (upcoming)
