The relationship between emotional intelligence and sales performance: From intuition to research

This study was designed to reveal relationships between emotional intelligence (EI), as represented by indices on the Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i), and actual sales performance of financial advisors in the insurance/financial service sector. The sales performance measure used was actual commission earned by the financial advisors in 2003. The researcher hypothesized that a positive relationship exists between emotional intelligence and sales performance.; Emotional intelligence can be defined as "the ability to perceive accurately, appraise, and express emotions; the ability to access and/or generate feelings when they facilitate thought; the ability to understand emotions and emotional knowledge; and the ability to regulate emotions to promote emotional and intellectual growth" (Mayer & Salovey, 1997, p. 10). The company in which this study occurred is considered medium size and offers insurance and financial service products throughout the nation. These products are both internally and externally developed.; In this study, the assessment instrument used was the EQ-i. The EQ-i was given to a stratified random sample of 100 financial advisors. In analyzing the data, the Pearson correlation and analysis of variance (ANOVA) were applied to the data. While the correlations were modest they were significant. The three research questions were supported by this research.; Research Question Number 1. Is there a significant relationship between EI and sales performance as measured by the EQ-i in a company in the insurance/financial service sector? Research Question Number 2. Does one or more of the five different EI composite scales of the EQ-i have a greater impact on sales performance than other composite scales in a company in the insurance/financial service sector? Research Question Number 3. Does one or more of the fifteen different EI content subscales of the EQ-i have a greater impact on sales performance than other content subscales of the EQ-i in a company in the insurance/financial service sector?...