Since its inception, the concept of emotional intelligence (EI) has taken hold of people’s imagination. To the average person, it makes sense that navigating the world of emotions can be a valuable skill. To psychologists trying to predict life success, EI also captured the attention of researchers who believe that “book smarts” isn’t enough.
The interest in EI doesn’t mean that it’s actually all that well understood. Various theories emphasize that EI means you understand yourself, while others focus on how you read social signals. Which will get you further in life, then, becomes a debatable point.
A New Approach to EI
The latest entry into the EI debate comes from Victoria University’s Stjepan Sambol and colleagues (2025), who ask whether it’s self- or other-focused abilities that count in high-stakes situations. Defining EI ability as “a set of emotion-related cognitive skills,” they set out to compare which of these cognitive skills would be of greatest value in doing well on a set of real-life tasks.
Rather than just asking people to rate their own EI, the Victoria U. research team used an EI ability measure that taps into EI’s various facets. The measure, known as the Meyer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional…
