The Moderating Role of Job Characteristics on Emotional Intelligence and Performance

Abstract

The concept of emotional intelligence (EI) proposes that intelligence and emotion act in interactive and integrated way. People can solve technical problems far easier than human problems in their personal, home and professional lives, which illustrates the vital role of EI in their lives in general and at workplace in particular. The current dissertation investigated the moderating role of job characteristics in relation to emotional intelligence and performance. Employees’ EI was measured by utilizing a 33 items scale, while performance was assessed through a 16 items scale that measured their organizational citizenship behavior (OCB). The study comprised of two phases; a pilot study and the main study. For the main study, questionnaires were completed by 444 participants employed in private sector organizations. The moderating role of job characteristics was assessed by applying general linear model analysis and step-wise multiple regression analysis. Results showed a positive association between emotional intelligence and performance. It was established that employees’ performance can be significantly predicted based upon their EI scores. It was established further that job characteristics like autonomy and internal interaction moderate the EI-performance relationship. The predictive ability of EI for performance suggests the use of the EI measure as a selection tool by the human resource managers and its potential as a proactive measure to reduce employee turnover. Key words: Occupational Psychology, Organizational Behavior, Human Resource Management, Employee Selection, Moderating Role, Emotional Intelligence, Job Performance, Organizational Citizenship Behavior, Job Characteristics, Autonomy, Internal Interaction, External Interaction