In his book, Working with Emotional Intelligence (NY: Bantam Books, 1998), Goleman describes emotional intelligence (EQ) as "the capacity for recognizing our own feelings and those of others, for motivating ourselves, and for managing emotions well in ourselves and in our relationships." EQ helps us to navigate through our personal and professional lives more successfully.

People around the world are talking about the importance of EQ. But the concept is not only for big corporations. Fostering emotional intelligence is critical to preventing, negotiating, and transforming conflict in our communities. Not only does EQ help us to acknowledge and face situations of conflict, it can also help to channel feelings so that they are not repressed or ignored. Goleman argues that people who are deficient in EQ are more lonely, depressed, angry, unruly, nervous, worry more, and show impuslive and agressive behavior. The good news is that, as with other intelligences, emotional intelligence is not biologically predetermined or fixed — we can all learn to improve our EQ throughout our lives with the right kinds of learning opportunities.

Below are Goleman’s descriptions of ‘Personal Competence’ and ‘Social Competence’ which together compose each person’s portfolio of EQ. Try using these categories and their criteria to discuss the following questions: How are you emotionally intelligent? What opportunities do you have for developing your EQ? How should EQ be understood in Indian contexts? How must we change factory-schools in India to develop more emotionally intelligent human beings?

PERSONAL COMPETENCE

Self-Awareness: Knowing one’s internal states, preferences, resources, and intuitions

• Emotional Awareness - recognizing one’s emotions and their effects
• Accurate Self-Assessment - knowing one’s strengths and limits
• Self-Confidence - a strong sense of one’s self-worth and capabilities

Self-Regulation: Managing one’s internal states, impulses, and resources

• Self-Control - keeping disruptive emotions and impulses in check
• Trustworthiness - maintaining standards of honesty and integrity
• Conscientiousness - taking responsibility for personal performance
• Adaptability - flexibility in handling change
• Innovation - being comfortable with novel ideas, approaches, and new information

Motivation: Emotional tendencies that guide or facilitate reaching goals

• Achievement Drive - striving to improve or meet a standard of excellence
• Commitment - aligning with the goals of the group or organization
• Initiative - readiness to act on opportunites
• Optimism - persistence in pursuing goals despite obstacles and setbacks

SOCIAL COMPETENCE

Empathy: Awareness of others’ feelings, needs, and concerns

• Understanding Others - sensing others’ feelings/perspectives and taking active interest in them
• Developing Others - sensing the developmental needs of others, helping bolster their abilities
• Service Orientation - anticipating, recognizing, and meeting the needs of others
• Leveraging Diversity - cultivating opportunities through different kinds of people
• Political Awareness - reading a group’s emotional currents and power relationships

Social Skills: Adeptness at inducing desirable responses in others

• Influence - wielding effective tactics for persuasion
• Communication - listening openly and sending convincing messages
• Conflict Management - negotiating and resolving disagreements
• Leadership - inspiring and guiding individuals and groups
• Change Catalyst - initiating or managing change
• Building Bonds - nurturing instrumental relationships
• Collaboration and cooperation - working with others toward shared goals
• Team Capabilities - creating a group vision and action plan in pursuing collective goals