15 Research-Based Emotional Intelligence Benefits

Emotional intelligence, often called EQ, has received a great deal of attention in psychology, education, and workplace training. It’s frequently described as essential for happiness, strong relationships, and success at work — but are big absolute claims of its importance overdone?

While writing my emotional intelligence workbook, Building Skills to Uplevel Life, I took a closer look at what the research actually shows. Rather than repeating popular talking points, I wanted to sort out the hype from reality and find out which benefits of emotional intelligence are supported by evidence. 

What I discovered: Although sweeping declarations like "EQ is more important than IQ" overstate the case, there's a lot of research backing up a lot of benefits. 

15 Research-Based High Emotional Intelligence (EQ) Benefits

🟢➜ For background on emotional intelligence, check out this post:  What Is Emotional Intelligence (EI)? Definitions, Models, and Skills

📚➜References for each benefit are listed in the Reference section at the end of the post. 

1. Happiness, Subjective Wellbeing, and Life Satisfaction

A large meta-analysis (study of studies) found a positive connection between emotional intelligence and a sense of well-being, with emotionally intelligent people reporting greater happiness and overall life satisfaction. 

2. Stress Resilience (The Ability to Withstand Stress, Bounce Back, and Thrive)

Research shows that people with higher emotional intelligence have increased stress resilience. They are better able to withstand the impact of stressors, recover more effectively from challenging situations, and thrive in the face of adversity. 

3. Stronger Relationships

Individuals with higher EQ are more likely to create and maintain healthy, happy relationships. 

Their ability to understand and work through their own emotions and manage their emotional reaction, along with understanding the feelings of others, contributes to:

• effective communication,
• empathy, and
• conflict management.

4. Better Job Performance and Satisfaction

According to many studies, people with higher EQ tend to perform better at work and feel more satisfied with their jobs. 

Higher emotional intelligence is connected to:

• Superior interpersonal skills
• Effective leadership qualities
• Adaptability in the workplace
• Increased job satisfaction and success

5. Academic Achievement Across All Levels From Elementary School to University

Emotional intelligence makes a big difference in schools. Students with strong emotional skills often do better academically—at every level, from elementary school to college.

This is one reason why Social Emotional Learning (SEL) is an important part of our kids' education.

6. Self-Control and Motivation

People with higher emotional intelligence demonstrate greater self-control and motivation.

Emotional intelligence helps people:

• Regulate their emotions
• Resist impulsive behaviors
• Stay motivated to pursue goals

These benefits contribute greatly to personal and professional success.

7. Reduced Risk of Depression

Lower emotional intelligence has been consistently associated with a higher risk of depression.

Not being able to recognize, understand, and manage emotions can lead to feelings of depression and keep the depression going. 

Low EI contributes to depression by reducing emotion regulation and stress resilience, and also by interfering with your ability to create and maintain positive relationships.

8. Reduced Risk of General Anxiety 

Lower emotional intelligence is also associated with a higher risk of generalized anxiety.

People with lower emotional intelligence may struggle to deal with various stressors, leading to persistent feelings of worry, nervousness, and anxiety. 

9. Less Social Anxiety

When it comes to social anxiety, having lower emotional intelligence plays a big role. Research shows that people with lower emotional intelligence might struggle with social interactions, making their social anxiety worse. They might have a hard time understanding other people's emotions, expressing themselves clearly, and picking up on social cues, which can lead to more anxiety in social situations.

10. Protects Against Eating Disorders

Difficulty recognizing and coping with emotions (low EI) can lead to eating disorders, including anorexia, bulimia, binge eating, and compulsive overeating.

11. Less Likely to Smoke, or Abuse Alcohol and Drugs

Individuals with lower emotional intelligence are more likely to engage in harmful behaviors—like smoking or developing addictions to drugs and alcohol. Difficulty managing emotions effectively may drive them to rely on these behaviors as coping mechanisms.

People with lower emotional intelligence may turn to substances to cope with stress, and they can have a tougher time staying sober and smoke-free when they try to quit. 

Emotional growth can stunt out at whatever age someone begins using substances to cope. When I work with clients on quitting unhealthy habits, I always like to start by working on emotion skills.  

12. Reduced Risk of Internet Addiction

Having lower emotional intelligence is linked to a higher risk of internet addiction. Difficulties in emotional regulation may contribute to excessive and problematic internet use.

13. Reduced Aggression and Hostility

Challenges in understanding and managing emotions may contribute to interpersonal difficulties and conflict. Individuals with lower emotional intelligence are more likely to become angry and aggressive.

14. Protects Against Job Burnout

Having lower emotional intelligence is connected to job burnout. Struggling to handle work stress and deal with coworkers can lead to higher burnout rates.

15. Reduced Risk of Suicidal Thoughts and Behavior

Most concerningly, lower emotional intelligence is associated with an increased risk of suicidal ideation (thoughts) and behavior. The inability to effectively cope with and regulate emotions may contribute to severe mental health challenges, leading to hopelessness and suicide. 

🟢➜ For a closer look at the research behind this association, see this post: Emotional Intelligence and Suicide Risk: What Research Shows.

Emotional Intelligence Workbook

When I was pregnant with my first child, long before I became a counselor, I dove into learning everything I could about good parenting because I didn't want to parent the way I had been parented. That self-help quest led me to learn a lot about emotions: how to handle your own and other people's. 

I eventually started teaching parenting classes and studying to become a counselor. 

After decades of helping clients improve their personal and relationship skills, I created  Building Skills to Uplevel Life: Silver Lining Emotional Intelligence Workbook to put all that learning in a format that could be used by a broad range of individuals, and by other counselors and helping professionals. 

It's full of practical, tried-and-tested explanations, tips, and techniques, as well as simple EQ-building exercises to make your life better. 

References

1. Sánchez-Álvarez, N., Extremera, N., & Fernández-Berrocal, P. (2016). The relation between emotional intelligence and subjective well-being: A meta-analytic investigation. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 11(3), 276–285. https://doi.org/10.1080/17439760.2015.1058968

2. Schneider, T. R., Lyons, J. B., & Khazon, S. (2013). Emotional intelligence and resilience. Personality and Individual Differences, 55(8), 909–914. 

3. Malouff, J. M., Schutte, N. S., & Thorsteinsson, E. B. (2014). Trait Emotional Intelligence and Romantic Relationship Satisfaction: A Meta-Analysis. American Journal of Family Therapy, 42(1), 53–66.

4. Dogru Ç. (2022). A Meta-Analysis of the Relationships Between Emotional Intelligence and Employee Outcomes. Frontiers in psychology, 13, 611348. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.611348

5. MacCann, C., Jiang, Y., Brown, L. E. R., Double, K. S., Bucich, M., & Minbashian, A. (2020). Emotional intelligence predicts academic performance: A meta-analysis. Psychological bulletin, 146(2), 150–186. 

6. Dumciene, A., & Sipaviciene, S. (2021). The Role of Gender in Association between Emotional Intelligence and Self-Control among University Student-Athletes. International journal of environmental research and public health, 18(22), 11819. 

7. Amirifard, N., Payandeh, M., Aeinfar, M., Sadeghi, M., Sadeghi, E., & Ghafarpor, S. (2017). A Survey on the Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Level of Depression and Anxiety among Women with Breast Cancer. International journal of hematology-oncology and stem cell research, 11(1), 54–57.

8. Wells, J., Watson, K., E Davis, R., Siraj A Quadri, S., R Mann, J., Verma, A., Sharma, M., & Nahar, V. K. (2021). Associations among Stress, Anxiety, Depression, and Emotional Intelligence among Veterinary Medicine Students. International journal of environmental research and public health, 18(8), 3934. 

9. Cejudo, J., Rodrigo-Ruiz, D., López-Delgado, M. L., & Losada, L. (2018). Emotional Intelligence and Its Relationship with Levels of Social Anxiety and Stress in Adolescents. International journal of environmental research and public health, 15(6), 1073. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph15061073

10. Romero-Mesa, J., Peláez-Fernández, M. A., & Extremera, N. (2021). Emotional intelligence and eating disorders: a systematic review. Eating and weight disorders: EWD, 26(5), 1287–1301. 

11. Leite, K. P., Martins, F. M. P., Trevizol, A. P., Noto, J. R. S., & Brietzke, E. (2019). A critical literature review on emotional intelligence in addiction. Trends in psychiatry and psychotherapy, 41(1), 87–93. 

Berking, M., Margraf, M., Ebert, D., Wupperman, P., Hofmann, S. G., & Junghanns, K. (2011). Deficits in emotion-regulation skills predict alcohol use during and after cognitive-behavioral therapy for alcohol dependence. Journal of consulting and clinical psychology, 79(3), 307–318. 

12. Khoshakhlagh, H., & Faramarzi, S. (2012). The relationship of emotional intelligence and mental disorders with internet addiction in internet users university students. Addiction & health, 4(3-4), 133–141.

13. García-Sancho, E., Dhont, K., Salguero, J. M., & Fernández-Berrocal, P. (2017). The personality basis of aggression: The mediating role of anger and the moderating role of emotional intelligence. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology, 58(4), 333–340. 

14. Michinov E. (2022). The Moderating Role of Emotional Intelligence on the Relationship Between Conflict Management Styles and Burnout among Firefighters. Safety and health at work, 13(4), 448–455. 

15. Abdollahi, A., Hosseinian, S., & Rasuli, R. (2020). Emotional Intelligence Moderates Anhedonia and Suicidal Ideation in Depressed Patients. Psychological reports, 123(3), 660–673. 

← Previous Post Next Post →