Emotional Intelligence on a Global Scale

The continued globalization of industries and organizations has and will change the way business is done for decades to come. Yet, forming human connections and relationships will always be a part of the process. As these connections and relationships continue to scale to international levels, understanding yours and others’ emotional intelligence (EI) on a global scale is ever more important.

Recent research completed by Multi-Health Systems Inc. (MHS) looked at how emotional intelligence develops and compares across the world. Seeking to understand how emotional intelligence differs across the globe, this research provides unique insight into the similarities and differences in emotional intelligence.

Does where you live influence your emotional intelligence?

MHS collected data from 10,000 individuals across the world and compared their emotional intelligence (as measured by the EQ-i 2.0®). Perhaps the most interesting piece is that only minor differences were found between most regions across the globe` in emotional intelligence, indicating that culture only plays a very small part in emotional and social functioning. The overall emotional intelligence scores found in North and South America were similar to those found in Europe, Asia, Africa, and Oceania. However, small differences were seen on specific aspects of emotional intelligence, most notably, Independence, Flexibility, and Optimism. These differences illustrate that while EI as a construct seems to be embraced and understood equally across the world, specific cultural differences can be seen when looking at individual skills associated with EI.

Does gender or age impact emotional intelligence?

The difference in EI between men and women was more pronounced. Long have we seen gender differences in EI within North American populations, however, this research illustrates that these gender differences are not unique to North America. Across the globe, women score higher than men on Empathy, Emotional Self-Awareness, and Emotional Expression. Men score higher, albeit by not as large of a margin, than women on Problem Solving, Stress Tolerance, and Self-Regard. These differences were pervasive across world regions. Further, age differences typically found in North America were also seen across the world, illustrating that your emotional intelligence increases as you age.

What does this mean for your use of assessments?

When using assessments in your practice or organization, it is critical to consider the context in which your client operates (i.e., do they work with people from other nationalities, are they being considered for international relocation, etc.). Rather than being prescriptive about global EI trends, ask your clients for their observations on how specific EI skills are demonstrated by individuals from different cultures. They may be able to shed some light on valid EI differences, relevant to their work, that don’t show up in this global research.

Summary

Understanding these insights into global similarities and differences in emotional intelligence, as measured by the EQ-i 2.0, provide a global yardstick for which to measure, select, and develop talent and leaders to drive your organizations forward. The EQ-i 2.0 Global Norms provide access to this yardstick and ensures that individuals and organizations can count on their measurement of emotional intelligence on a global level.

Multi-Health Systems Inc., A leader in developing the best psychological assessments for more than 30 years, Multi-Health Systems Inc. (MHS) serves clients in corporate, government, military, clinical, educational, forensic, pharmaceutical, and research settings. MHS published the first commercially available assessment for emotional intelligence, a skill set which drives high performance in the workplace. The latest revision of this tool, the Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i 2.0®) is used to identify critical determinants of workplace success, supporting and driving talent management initiatives.

Interested in learning more about the EQ-i 2.0 and Emotional Intelligence?

Visit http://info.mhs.com/learnmore today to get in touch with an MHS consultant