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You may be familiar with the term IQ, but do you know what EQ is? Emotional Quotient is a measure of emotional intelligence, which is considered equally as, or even more important than, traditional IQ testing, especially in business. How you experience, recognise and respond to your own and other people’s emotions is a very important part of living and working in groups.

Why is it important?

Many people have exceptional inter-personal and emotional skills that do not get measured on standard IQ tests. And today it is generally recognised that success in life depends on far more than just your ability to understand complex logical concepts. After all, jobs involve more than just being good at working on a computer. Navigating the complex emotions of a boardroom strategy meeting, managing a team of people from diverse backgrounds and keep conflict to a minimum are ways emotional intelligence can lead to success in business.

What does it measure?

EQ tests will measure one’s ability to recognise subtle emotional exchanges in a group, for example, ‘Do you know how every person in a group feels about each other?’ But it also tests one’s ability to understand one’s own emotions with questions like, ‘When you are upset can you easily pinpoint the exact reason?’

Problems with EQ tests

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While the practice of emotional intelligence testing attempts to include strengths that were not traditionally measured in IQ tests, there are several problems with EQ tests.

The tests usually involve multiple-choice questions and do not allow for more creative input. Answers depend heavily on a person’s background and training in questions testing problem-solving skills. The tests are also culturally biased in favour of whoever wrote them, so it is very difficult to offer an objective measure which tests all people equally.

So while emotional intelligence remains an important factor in evaluating personal strengths, it may still be too elusive, varied and subtle to measure objectively.