Is emotional intelligence the key to success in life?

29 October 2001

While people have shown they can produce great scientific advances and generally possess high levels of cognitive intelligence, many of us lack emotional intelligence - we simply don't know how to perceive, understand, express, or manage our emotions effectively.

There are adverse consequences to having low emotional intelligence. These include relationship problems, rage in the workplace, alcoholism, bad investment decisions, failure to advance in a career, and poor physical health.

This is one of the clear messages to emanate from a recently published book, Emotional Intelligence In Everyday Life, a major scientific inquiry by internationally renowned researchers.

One of the book's co-editors is Dr Joseph Ciarrochi, of the Department of Psychology, University of Wollongong. He has been conducting cutting-edge research in how emotions influence thinking and behaviour, and how emotional intelligence can be measured. He has also been developing training programs designed to increase people's social and emotional intelligence.

'The book provides precisely what we need on the topic of emotional intelligence - a scientifically grounded yet widely applicable analysis of this important aspect of human functioning. It should be warmly welcomed by both scientists and practitioners in the fields of business, education, medicine and counselling," according to Professor Robert B.Cialdini, of Arizona State University.

The book, already proving to be a top seller for its genre, is strongly based on scientific investigation and has been co-edited by Professor Joseph Forgas, Scientia Professor of Psychology at the University of New South Wales and Professor Jack Mayer, Professor of Psychology at the University of New Hampshire. It involves a range of other contributors in Australia and overseas including leading scientists from Yale, University of Texas, Rutgers University, and the University of Sydney.

For further information contact Dr Joseph Ciarrochi on 4221 4488.