Is The Emotional Intelligence Of Secondary School Principals Correlated With The Job Satisfaction Or Performance Of Their Teachers?

Abstract

ABSTRACT This study examines the association between secondary school administrators' emotional intelligence (EI) and teacher job satisfaction. Two separate questions guided the study. First, does the emotional intelligence of secondary school administrators relate to teacher job satisfaction and secondly, is there a relationship between EI of administrators and teacher job performance? Principals of 84 Kansas high schools participated in the Mayer Salovey Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT) with at least two of their staff members participating in a teacher survey that included questions regarding Job Construct, Organizational Citizenship Behavior, Job Scope, Role Stress, and Burn Out. The surveys for both parties were distributed online through a website with a username and password. The MSCEIT was offered through Multi-Health Systems database while the teacher survey was offered through survey monkey. Overall 7 different levels of EI were tested as they related to both job satisfaction and job performance. Initially the study concluded that there were findings of significant correlation between Branch 1 of the EI quotient (Perception of Emotion) and job satisfaction, however, that finding was actually negatively correlated showing that the higher the Branch 1 score of the principal, the less satisfied threir staff members were with their job. When compared with job performance no significant correlation was found. Subsequently, this study shows that regardless of the claims of those pushing EI, further study is needed to verify those claims. The findings here indicate that EI has little to no significant association to either job satisfaction nor performance.