Measuring emotional intelligence: content, construct and criterion‐related validity

Many authors claim there is a paucity of evidence for the validity of measures of emotional intelligence (EI). This paper summarises existing information on the reliability and validity of two measures of EI, the Dulewicz and Higgs EIQ and the Bar‐on EQ‐i. It also reports the results of a study on middle managers which investigated the degree to which these two EI instruments measure the same constructs: their concurrent/criterion‐related validity; and the relationship between EI and morale and stress at work. Correlations between the two instruments showed content and construct validity, with 16 out of the 20 hypothesised relationships between scales being significant. Correlations between various measures of morale and stress at work and EIQ demonstrated construct validity. Significant relationships were also found between EIQ and current job performance, thus providing further evidence of concurrent/criterion‐related validity.