Emotional Intelligence and Job Performance: An Empirical Evidence in Southwestern Malaysia

Muhamad Fadli Razali; Shah Rollah Abdul Wahab; Nur Syafiqah A. Rahim; Amalina Ibrahim; Junaidah Yusof; Dongso Yoo

In recent years, authors have highlighted the importance of emotional intelligence as a predictor of life success. Previous research has found that emotional intelligence is one of the decisive variables that may motivate people to do a better job or vice versa. However, the findings on the effect between the two variables were inconsistent and there is currently minimal research in the context of Malaysian manufacturing companies. This study aims to investigate the effect of emotional intelligence and job performance among operators in a manufacturing company located at southwestern Malaysia. In this study, the researcher used a 48-item questionnaire to collect responses from 103 studied operators. The Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire Short Form was used to assess emotional intelligence, while the Individual Work Performance Questionnaire was employed to assess job performance. The data was then analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) and SmartPLS. The main finding of this study reveals that there was a significant effect of emotional intelligence on job performance in the studied respondents. It demonstrates that people with high emotional intelligence perform better on the job because they are able to manage relationships with other colleagues and overcome obstacles at work. On top of that, the researcher identified areas for more investigation to take into account in the future. Future research could consider conducting this similar study in a wider range of locations with the cooperation of numerous manufacturing companies. Furthermore, other instruments such as the Wong & Law Emotional Intelligence Scale (WLEIS) may be used in future research to measure emotional intelligence.

Al Ali, O. E., Garner, I., & Magadley, W. (2012). An exploration of the relationship between emotional intelligence and job performance in police organizations. Journal of police and Criminal Psychology, 27 (1), 1-8.
Baker, C. (2023). Emotional intelligence in the workplace. Leaders.
Bar-On, R., Goleman, D., Salovey, P., & Mayer, J. D. (2000). Emotional intelligence: A measure of one's ability to deal with emotions. Journal of Applied Psychology, 85(2), 337-344.
Brackett, M. A., Palomera, R., Mojsa-Kaja, J., Reyes, M. R., & Salovey, P. (2020). Emotional intelligence in educational settings: How does it impact teaching and learning? Educational Psychology Review, 32(1), 1-28.
Brunton, S. L., Budiši?, M., Kaiser, E., & Kutz, J. N. (2021). Modern Koopman theory for dynamical systems.
Cavazotte, F., Moreno, V., & Hickmann, M. (2017). Effects of leader intelligence, personality, and emotional intelligence on transformational leadership and managerial performance. Leadership Quarterly, 23(3), 443-455.
Chand, M., Caputo, A., & Malek, A. (2019). The impact of emotional intelligence on organizational performance: Evidence from the Indian service industry. Asia Pacific Journal of Business Administration, 11(2), 146-162.
Chandrasekara, W.S. (2019). The effect of transformational leadership style on employees job satisfaction and job performance: A case of apparel manufacturing industry in Sri Lanka. International Journal of Economics, Commerce and Management, 7(7), 385-393.
Cherniss, C. (2010). Emotional intelligence: What it is and why it matters. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, New Orleans, L.A.
Cherry, K. (2018). 5 Components of emotional intelligence. Very Well Mind.
Chong, S. C., Falahat, M., & Lee, Y. S. (2020). Emotional intelligence and job performance of academicians in Malaysia. International Journal of Higher Education, 9(1), 69-80.
Choi, J. N. (2007). Contextual performance in organizations: A review and future directions. Human Resource Management Review, 17(1), 24-36.
Codier, E., Freel, M., & Kamikawa, C. (2019). Emotional intelligence, caring behaviors, and work-related outcomes in nursing. Journal of Nursing Administration, 49(5), 243-249.
Dhani, P., & Sharma, T. (2017). Effect of emotional intelligence on job performance of IT employees: A gender study. Procedia Computer Science, 122, 180-185.
Drigas, A. S., & Papoutsi, C. (2019). Emotional intelligence as an important asset for HR in organizations: Leaders and employees. International Journal of Advanced Corporate Learning, 12(1), 58-66.
Devonish, D. (2016). Emotional intelligence and job performance: the role of psychological well-being. International Journal of Workplace Health Management, 9(4), 428-442.
Gong, Z., Chen, Y. & Wang, Y. (2019). The influence of emotional intelligence on job burnout and job performance: Mediating effect of psychological capital. Front. Psychol, 10, 2707.
Goleman, D. (2011). The brain and emotional intelligence: New insights. Regional Business, 94-95.
Goleman, D. (2021). Leadership: The power of emotional intelligence. More Than Sound LLC.
Guy, C. T., & Lee, C. W. (2015). Emotional intelligence: The new science of personal and professional success. Journal of Business Research, 68(9), 1944-1951.
Ghaonta, I., & Kumar, P. (2014). Emotional intelligence as related to gender, stream and social intelligence. Journal of Education Studies, Trends & Practices, 4(1), 76-87.
Haenlein, M. & Kaplan, A.M. (2004). A beginner’s guide to Partial Least Squares. Understanding Statistics. 3(4), 283-297.
Ismail, A., Suh-Suh, Y., Ajis, M. N. E., & Dollah, N. F. (2009). Relationship between occupational stress, emotional intelligence and job performance: An empirical study in Malaysia. Theoretical & Applied Economics, 16(10), 3-16.
Kafetsios, K., & Zampetakis, L. A. (2014). Emotional intelligence and job satisfaction: Testing the mediatory role of positive and negative affect at work. Personality and Individual Differences, 55(3), 327-331.
Kong, F., Zhao, J. & You, X. (2016). Emotional intelligence and life satisfaction in Chinese university students: The mediating role of self-esteem and social support. Personality and Individual Differences, 53 (2012), 1039-1043.
Koopmans, L., Bernaards, C. M., Hildebrandt, V. H., Schaufeli, W. B., & van der Beek, A. J. (2011). The individual work performance questionnaire: Development and validation of a new instrument. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, 60(1), 24-36.
Koopmans, L., Bernaards, C. M., Hildebrandt, V. H., Schaufeli, W. B., & van der Beek, A. J. (2014). Individual work performance: The role of individual and contextual factors. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, 63(5), 479-498.
Kumari, K., Ali, S.B., Nisa Khan, N. & Abbas, J. (2021). Examining the Role of Motivation and Reward in Employees’ Job Performance through Mediating Effect of Job Satisfaction: An Empirical Evidence. International Journal of Organizational Leadership, 10 (2021), 401-420.
Kuzu, A., & Eker, F. (2010). The Evaluation of Emotional Intelligence and Communication Skills of Nursing Students with Other University Students in Comparative Way. Journal of Search development in Nursing, 3, 14-29.
Latif, H., Majoka, M. I., & Khan, M. I. (2017). Emotional intelligence and job performance of high school female teachers. Pakistan Journal of Psychological Research, 32(2), 339-354.
Law, K. S., Wong, C. S., Huang, G. H., & Li, X. (2008). The effects of emotional intelligence on job performance and life satisfaction for research and development scientists in China. Asia Pacific Journal of Management, 25(1), 51-69.
Martins, A., Ramalho, N., & Morin, E. (2010). Emotional intelligence and the prediction of job performance: A meta-analysis. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 31(5), 567-585.
Mayer, J. D., Caruso, D. R., & Salovey, P. (2016). The ability model of emotional intelligence: Principles and updates. Emotion Review, 8(4), 290-300.
Mohamad, M., & Jais, J. (2016). Emotional intelligence and job performance: A study among Malaysian teachers. Procedia Economics and Finance, 35, 674-682.
Murphy, K. R. (2013). Job performance and productivity. In Psychology in Organizations (pp. 169-188). Psychology Press.
Newman, D. A., Joseph, D. L., & MacCann, C. (2010). Emotional intelligence and job performance: The importance of emotion regulation and emotional labor context. Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 3(2), 159-164.
Neve J-E., Kaats, M. & Ward, G. (2023). Workplace Wellbeing and Firm Performance. University Oxford Wellbeing Research, 1-42.
O’Boyle Jr, E. H., Humphrey, R. H., Pollack, J. M., Hawver, T. H., & Story, P. A. (2011). The relation between emotional intelligence and job performance: A meta?analysis. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 32(5), 788-818.
Petrides, K. V. (2001). Traits emotional intelligence theory. Social Behavior and Personality, 29(1), 10-20.
Gardner, L., & Qualter, P. (2010). Emotional intelligence and health: A meta-analysis. Journal of Health Psychology, 15(3), 334-347.
Petrides, K. V. (2009). Psychometric properties of the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire (TEIQue). In C. Stough, D. H. Saklofske, & J. D. A. Parker (Eds.), Assessing Emotional Intelligence: Theory, Research, and Applications (pp. 85-101). Springer.
Petrides, K. V. (2010). Trait emotional intelligence theory. Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 3(2), 136-139.
Petrides, K. V., Mikolajczak, M., Mavroveli, S., Sanchez-Ruiz, M. J., Furnham, A., & Pérez-González, J. C. (2016). Developments in trait emotional intelligence research. Emotion Review, 8(4), 335-341.
Petrides, K. V., Pita, R., & Kokkinaki, F. (2007). The role of trait emotional intelligence in the prediction of performance. European Journal of Personality, 21(3), 203-227.
Ramayah, T., Cheah, J., Chuah, F., Ting, H., and Mumtaz, A. M. (2016), Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) Using SmartPLS 3.0: An Updated Guide and Practical Guide to Statistical Analysis. Pearson Malaysia.
Rahim, M. A., & Malik, F. (2018). Emotional intelligence and organizational performance: A study of managers in Pakistan. Journal of Management & Organization, 24(1), 145-162.
Rego, A., Sousa, F., Pina e Cunha, M., Correia, A., & Saur-Amaral, I. (2007). Leader self-reported emotional intelligence and perceived employee creativity: An exploratory study. Creativity and Innovation Management, 16(3), 250-264.
Rode, J. C., Mooney, C. H., Arthaud-Day, M. L., Near, P. P., Ribin, R. S., & Baldwin, T. T. (2007). Emotional intelligence and individual performance: Evidence of direct and moderated effects. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 28(4), 399-421.
Sarwar, A., Aslam, M. S., & Rasheed, M. I. (2019). The role of emotional intelligence in enhancing organizational effectiveness: The mediating role of interpersonal conflict and employee creativity. Journal of Public Affairs, 19(3), e1937.
Subhashini, S., Kumar, S. P., & Kumar, K. R. (2016). The impact of emotional intelligence on job performance in the manufacturing sector. International Journal of Engineering and Management Research, 6(2), 15-23.
Schermerhorn, J. R., Hunt, J. G., & Osborn, R. N. (2008). Organizational behavior. Wiley, 10(3), 315-332.
Sonnentag, S., Volmer, J., & Spychala, A. (2008). Job performance. The SAGE Handbook of Organizational Behavior, 1, 427-447.
Shamsuddin, N., & Rahman, R. A. (2014). The relationship between emotional intelligence and job performance of call centre agents. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 129, 75-81.
Shahhosseini, M., Silong, A. D., Ismaill, I. A., & Uli, J. N. (2012). The role of emotional intelligence on job performance. International Journal of Business and Social Science, 3(21), 241-247.
Tsaur, S. H., Hsu, F. S., & Lin, H. (2019). Workplace fun and work engagement in the hospitality industry: The role of emotional intelligence among employees. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 82, 123-131.
Thaker, H. M. T., Khaliq, A., Mand, A. A., Hussain, H. I., Thaker, M. A. B. M. T., & Pitchay, A. B. A. (2020). Exploring the drivers of social media marketing in Malaysian Islamic banks: An analysis via smart PLS approach. Journal of Islamic Marketing. 12(1), 145-165.
Vernon, P. A., Villani, N., Schermer, J. A., & Petrides, K. V. (2008). Trait emotional intelligence and personality: A meta-analysis. Personality and Individual Differences, 44(5), 1055-1068.
Vratskikh, I., Masadeh, R., Al-Lozi, M., & Maqableh, M. (2016). The impact of emotional intelligence on job performance via the mediating role of job satisfaction. International Journal of Business and Management, 11(2), 69-83.
Weidema, B. P., Bauer, C., Hischier, R., Mutel, C., Nemecek, T., Reinhard, J., & Wernet, G. (2013). Overview and methodology: Data quality guidelines for the ecoinvent database version 3. The International Journal of Life Cycle Assessment, 18(5), 1045-1057.
Yoke, L. B., & Panatik, S. A. (2015). Emotional intelligence and job performance among schoolteachers. Asian Social Science, 11(13), 100-111.

Razali, M. F., Wahab, S. R. A., Rahim, N. S. A., Ibrahim, A., Yusof, J., & Yoo, D. (2024). Emotional Intelligence and Job Performance: An Empirical Evidence in Southwestern Malaysia. International Journal of Academic Research in Accounting, Finance and Management Sciences, 14(3), 469–485.

Copyright: © 2024 The Author(s)
Published by HRMARS (www.hrmars.com)
This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) license. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this license may be seen at: http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode

International Journal of Academic Research in Accounting, Finance and Management Sciences

Open Access Journal

Emotional Intelligence and Job Performance: An Empirical Evidence in Southwestern Malaysia

Muhamad Fadli Razali, Shah Rollah Abdul Wahab, Nur Syafiqah A. Rahim, Amalina Ibrahim, Junaidah Yusof, Dongso Yoo

Further Information

Our Journals

Get intouch with us