Abstract:

Discusses emotional intelligence (EI) from a psychometric perspective with a focus on ability measures. Prior research is used to demonstrate that in EI research, like in other psychological fields, measures addressing the same construct but being based on performance or self-report show little to no convergence. It is argued that performance-based measures are better suited as indicators of EI. The Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT) as one such measure is presented and its validity is discussed. Whether or not ability measures of EI can be considered to be intelligence tasks is considered from several perspectives. This critique of EI measures tries to outline research questions warranting more attention in the future. The proposed recommendations include (1) trying to develop tasks with a strong background in emotion psychology, (2) using a broader variety of tasks in multivariate studies, and (3) using more appropriate criteria in validating EI.