Emotional intelligence as a determinant of leadership potential

Abstract

Emotional intelligence scores of employees of a financial institution who displayed leadership potential (n = 31) were compared with scores of a groupwho displayed little leadership potential. Leadershipwas rated by ascertaining the presence of transformational behaviour. All rated employees completed an emotional intelligence scale. Results indicated that the factors of optimism and self-actualisationwere significantly higher for the leader group. The non-leader group indicated higher scores on the positive impression scale, indicating possible positive skewing of results for that group. Generally, the research data indicates a link between the fundamental postulates of transformational leadership theory and emotional intelligence.

Opsomming
Emosionele intelligensie-tellings van’n groep werknemers binne ’n finansiele instelling wie leierskapspotensiaal getoon het (n = 31) is vergelyk met ’n groepwat min leierskapspotensiaal getoon het. Leierskapspotensiaal is bepaal op grond van die teenwoordigheid van transformasionele gedrag. Alle werknemerswat gemeet is het ’n emosionele intelligensieskaal voltooi. Resultate toon dat optimisme en selfaktualisasie beduidend hoer was vir die leiergroep. Die nie-leiergroep het hoer tellings getoon op die positiewe indruk-skaal, wat ’nmoontlike positiewe skeefheid van daardie groep se resultate aandui. Die navorsingsdata toon oor die algemeen’n koppeling tussen die fundamentele beginsels van transformasionele leierskapsteorie en emosionele intelligensie.