Case Study 1

International Journal of Research in Humanities and Social Studies
Volume 4, Issue 2, February 2017, PP1 -12

ISSN 2394-6288 (Print) & ISSN 2394-6296 (Online)
http://dx.doi.org/10.22259/ijrhss.0402001
Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Leadership Styles:

A Case Study of Leaders in Selected Banking Institutions in Kenya
Sr. Margaret Chepng’eno1, Dr. Thomas Ngui2
1
Catholic University of Eastern Africa, School of Business, Nairobi, Kenya
2
Catholic University of Eastern Africa, School of Business, Nairobi, Kenya
ABSTRACT
This study sought to determine the relationship between Emotional Intelligence (EI) and leadership styles of
managers among selected banking institutions in Kenya. It proposed that EI, which is the ability to perceive,
understand and manage emotions predicts transformational leadership (TL) style. The leaders’ EI scores were
obtained by administering the Emotional and Social Competency Inventory (ESCI), and to measure perceived
leadership styles, the raters completed the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ-5x). A sample of 60
leaders and 240 raters was drawn from six banks. Spearman’s Correlation was carried out on the data and the
results indicated a positive relationship between EI scores of leaders and TL style. Further analysis indicated a
positive relationship between EI and contingent reward and active MBE components of transactional leadership.
On the contrary negative relationships were revealed between EI and passive MBE as well as laissez-faire
leadership style, thus it was concluded that EI predicts leadership styles.
Keywords: Emotional Intelligence, Transformational, Transactional, Laissez-faire
INTRODUCTION
The critical role of leadership in organizational success justifies the emerging extensive research in
the area of leadership, and the quest for the most appropriate of its styles, as well as the factors that
predict it. In the literature, effective leaders have been linked to those demonstrating transformational
leadership (TL) behaviours because transformational leaders have been known to create and articulate
an attractive vision, and to inspire and revitalize their followers to perform beyond their expectation to
achieve that vision [41]. This is beneficial to every organization but more so to banking institutions
that contend with financial crisis of every kind. While most studies describe effective leaders, what
they do and how they make decisions, the effects of their feelings and moods, and generally, the role
of emotions in the leadership process, are often not explicitly considered [24]. Moreover their
selection disregards emotional aspects. This is partly because for many centuries decision making has
been attributed primarily to cognitive ability, and feelings and emotions have been regarded as
impediment to rational choice [30]. Nonetheless, psychologists have begun to assert that decision
making relies upon emotional assessment. In fact, individuals who cannot reference emotional
memory would be unable to make rational decisions at all [35]. Studies on leadership have also
indicated unexplained variance in performance that is not accounted for by general intelligence [17]
and this has led to extensive research on EI.
Emotional Intelligence refers to the ability to identify emotions, to manage and to use them to guide
decision making [47]. In leadership, this enables leaders to understand others’ needs and to develop
strategies for fulfilling them in order to influence their behaviour. This is significant since leadership
relates to the process of influencing others to understand and agree on what needs to be done and how
to do it, and facilitating efforts to accomplish objectives [50]. Generally the role of EI in leadership
among banking institutions in Kenya could be described as blurred, a situation partly caused by
disregard of emotional factors in decision making where the focus is on task and meeting targets.
Problem Statement
The banking sector has evolved drastically; commercial banks have become very competitive
resulting in various strategies for attracting new customers and retaining old ones. To become more
customer-focused banks have introduced various interventions that improve their financial base but
not without negative impact on employees’ mental and psychological wellbeing. Overloading and
extreme burden of work, stringent work deadlines, extended working hours, fear of termination of job
International Journal of Research in Humanities and Social Studies V4 ● I2 ● February 2017 1
Sr. Margaret Chepng’eno & Dr. Thomas Ngui “Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and
Leadership Styles: A Case Study of Leaders in Selected Banking Institutions in Kenya”
contracts, etc. are common problems among bank employees which have resulted in extremely high
level of stress and emotional imbalance. Fear of uncertainty during periods of financial crisis also
often leads to employees’ negative and defensive attitude, their turnover and eventual customer loss
[19].
The prevailing work situations in the banks reinforce the need for leaders who are in touch with
employees’ feelings and emotions and who can effectively manage these emotions so as to minimize
their negative impact. There is also need for leaders who not only focus on the task, but also maintain
a relationship with them so that while upholding a position of authority, they are still considered
friendly, understanding and considerate. The effort of building intimate relationships, based on
emotions, is particularly evident in transformational leaders who enable their followers to excel
beyond expectations by unifying their beliefs and values [21]. Researchers [6] [44] have confirmed
that TL is positively related to employee job satisfaction, commitment and performance in the
banking sector. This then raises the question: do emotionally intelligent leaders provide such kind of
leadership? Emotionally intelligent leaders are known for their social charm, empathy, self-awareness
and self-control [23]; how do these attributes relate to TL?
Although many studies have been done separately in the areas of leadership and EI, the relationship
between these variables is not widely tested, probably because people’s attitude towards EI has, to
some extent, been influenced by critics who disregard its significance. For example, Antonakis [1]
asserts that if anything matters for leader-member relations, it is personality and IQ and definitely not
EI. Such arguments seem to have influenced leader selection approaches that organizations adopt to
the extent that identification of employees for leadership positions tend to be based primarily on
intellectual abilities and experience whereas emotional attributes are downplayed.
Many studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of TL behavour in organizations [32] but there is a
relative lack of research regarding the antecedents of these behaviours [45]. Previous studies link it to
biographical background factors [4], intelligence [2], psychological factors [13], gender [34], and
leader fit [26], but in the overall the capacity of these individual differences to predict TL has been
inconclusive and as a consequence the suggestion that other unexplored factors such as EI may play a
prominent role in predicting TL behaviours [38] still holds. The purpose of this study, therefore, was
to test the relationship between EI and leadership styles as it attempted to fill the elusive dimension of
emotions in leadership. The study adds to the body of knowledge in the area of leadership by
introducing EI as one of the factors that organizations could use to identify effective leaders.
RESEARCH OBJECTIVES
The main aim of this study was to establish the relationship between EI and leadership styles
Research Hypotheses
H1: There is a positive relationship between EI and Transformational leadership
H2: There is a positive relationship between EI and transactional leadership
H3: There is a negative relationship between EI and Laissez-faire Leadership
THEORETICAL AND EMPIRICAL REVIEW
This study focused on Goleman’s Mixed Model of emotional intelligence [25] and the Full-Range
Theory (FRT) of Leadership proposed by Bass and Avolio [11]. In his model that combines mental
abilities and personality traits, Goleman [25] identified five EI components categorized as personal
competences and social competences. The five components were eventually revised and Boyatzis and
Goleman [15] provide the current version with four components (Self-awareness, Self-Management,
Social Awareness and Relationship Management) and twelve competencies. Self-awareness is
captured in emotional self-awareness competency, and refers to the ability to understand own
emotions and their effects on performance. Self management; the ability to effectively manage own
emotions, is captured in emotional self-control, achievement orientation, positive outlook and
adaptability. Social Awareness on the other relates to recognizing and understanding emotions of
others as portrayed in empathy and organizational awareness. Finally relationship management,
which is captured in five competencies: influence, coach and mentor, conflict management,
inspirational leadership and teamwork is the application of emotional understanding in dealing with
others.
2 International Journal of Research in Humanities and Social Studies V4 ● I2 ● February 2017
Babooa [7] defines leadership as the process of influencing behaviour in such a way that willing
commitment towards organizational goals is achieved and thus the importance of good leadership and
the extensive research in the area which have led to numerous theories that explain it. The full-rage
theory (FRT) of leadership consists of nine factors made up of five transformational, three
transactional and one non-transactional (laissez-faire) leadership factors [3]. Based on this theory,
transformational leaders encourage, inspire and excite followers to higher levels of performance [18],
are proactive and help their followers to attain unexpected goals [3] and rely on their personal
attributes to manage followers [41]. Through TL style, a leader establishes oneself as a role model by
gaining trust and confidence of followers [12].
The sub-dimensions of TL include Idealized Influence attribute, Idealized Influence behaviour,
Inspirational Motivation, Intellectual Stimulation and Individualized Consideration [11]. Idealized
influence attribute refers to the charisma of the leader enabling him to be perceived as confident,
powerful and focusing on higher-order ideals and ethics [3]. Through this attribute, the leader acts as
a role model by doing the right thing and inspiring the followers to do likewise and thus wins their
trust and respect [46]. Idealized Influence behaviour on the other hand describes the leaders’
excellent behaviour and willingness to forgo their personal needs to improve the objectives of their
workgroup [36]. The leader’s ability to articulate an attractive and encouraging vision to followers
describes the Inspirational Motivation of the leader [32] who energizes their followers by viewing the
future with optimism, stressing ambitious goals, projecting an idealized vision and communicating to
followers that the vision is achievable [3]. Such leaders motivate those around them by providing
meaning and challenge to their followers’ work [9] thus enabling them to perform beyond their
expectation.
Intellectual Stimulation enables transformational leaders to challenge old assumptions, take risks, and
solicit followers’ ideas [32]. Leaders exhibiting this attribute encourage innovation and creativity,
create an environment that is tolerant to new ideas and encourage others to consider old problems
with a renewed perspective. Through Individualized Consideration leaders contribute to follower
satisfaction by advising, supporting and paying attention to their individual needs that allow them to
develop and self-actualize [3]. Leaders exhibiting this attribute treat followers as individuals, attend
to their unique needs and may delegate certain responsibilities that help them to grow through
personal challenges, while acting as mentors or coaches to the followers [11]; [9]; [32].
Transactional leadership is the second part of the FRT of leadership. As contrasted with
transformational leaders who rely on their personal attributes to manage followers, transactional
leaders use rewards and punishment to strike deals with them and to shape their behaviour [41], thus,
depending on the follower’s performance, they offer reward or punishment. This leadership style
focuses on the leader-follower exchange process; the leader rewards the follower for specific
behaviours.
Transactional leadership has three dimensions: contingent reward that describes the degree to which
the leader sets up constructive transactions or exchanges with followers by clarifying expectations,
establishing the rewards for meeting these expectations [32] and providing followers with material or
psychological rewards contingent on the fulfillment of contractual obligations [3]; Active
Management-by-exception (MBE) that describes the ability to specify compliance standards, what
constitutes ineffective performance and the action to be taken for noncompliance [9] and Passive
MBE that describes the behaviour of a leader who does not monitor performance but only intervenes
after noncompliance has occurred or when mistakes have already happened. According to Bass [10],
active MBE is likely to be more effective than passive MBE.
The third part of the FRT of leadership is the Non-transactional Laissez-faire leadership which
represents the absence of transaction of all sorts with respect to leadership [3]. Laissez-faire leaders
avoid specifying agreements, clarifying expectations and providing goals and standards to be achieved
by followers [9]. This represents the avoidance or absence of leadership and leaders who score high
on this style avoid making decisions, hesitate taking action and are absent when needed [32].
Most recent studies in the area of EI and leadership focus on TL as a result of equating effective
leaders to those demonstrating TL behaviours [43] and several of them indicate that TL predicts
numerous criteria such as follower job satisfaction, leader effectiveness ratings, organizational
performance and follower motivation [32]. Popularity of TL style as well as its specific elements that

are relevant to EI has also led to a keen interest in this form of leadership [27]. Regarding EI-
leadership styles relationship, the findings of the previous studies are not conclusive and this justifies
the need for further research.
Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Transformational Leadership
Researchers have recently started to question what influences certain individuals to adopt
transformational style of leadership and whether emotional intelligence plays any role in leadership.
As a result, many studies that linked EI to TL reported that leaders who considered themselves
transformational reported that they were able to identify their own and others’ feelings and emotional
states, to express their own feelings to others, to use emotional knowledge when solving problems and
to effectively manage emotions. Previous studies [34] found that EI predicts TL and that, together
with femininity was the most predictive factor of TL accounting for 17% of variance in this leadership
style. Similarly, it has been found that EI is positively related to TL [29] and that it is associated with
some aspects of TL [8]. On the contrary, however, other studies found either negative or no
relationships between EI and TL. For example, a study conducted [37] revealed that individuals who
reported high EI were not more likely to demonstrate TL style. Moreover, no significant correlation
for the entire comparison between various dimensions of EI and TL [20] was found. Although most
previous researchers used MLQ to identify the managers’ perceived leadership styles, they differed on
the EI tools used as well as their data source. To evaluate EI, most researchers used ability measures
(EQi, MSCEIT and TMMS) and some of them utilized self-assessment data which may have led to
exaggerated findings.
Studies that support the relationship between EI and TL indicate that emotional intelligence has a
significant positive relationship with at least three dimensions of TL: idealized influence, inspirational
motivation and individualized consideration [8]; [40]; [22]. It was found that leaders’ EI aspect of
self-control and self-management is consistent with idealized influence [8]. When leaders understand
their emotions and those of others, they are supportive to their followers and this enhances their trust
and confidence on the leaders. Notably, consistent among many studies, inspirational motivation
correlates relatively highly with EI. Transformational leaders feel excited, are enthusiastic and
energetic and thus revitalize their followers to focus on the vision [16]. The link, therefore, between
EI and inspirational motivation is in emotional appeals that transformational leaders use for
inspirational motivation [24].
In another study [40] it was found that the ability to monitor and manage emotions were both
significantly related to the individualized consideration, implying that EI enables a leader to be aware
of others’ needs and to react accordingly by being in touch with their emotions. Such leaders are also
more likely to subordinate their personal needs in favour of others’ [48]. The positive relationship
between EI and individualized consideration is strengthened by empathy, which is a dimension of EI
that enables leaders to identify with and to show individual concern towards followers.
Intellectual stimulation reveals mixed results in its relationship with EI. Managing emotions
promotes positive effect and confidence in followers expressing and generating new ideas [48] and
thus intellectual stimulation is expected to be positively related to EI. However, some studies [40];
[8] have found an absence of relationship between this attribute and EI, a situation that may require
further investigation. The lack of correlation among the clusters of EI and intellectual stimulation has
been attributed to other possible aspects of EI not assessed in the previous studies [40] since creative
thinking and flexible planning required for intellectual stimulation [5] have been associated with EI
construct, and especially with the ability to use and assimilate emotions and thoughts [47]. Therefore,
the absence of relationship between the constructs does not mean that intellectual stimulation is not
related to EI. Other researchers [8] attribute the absence of relationship to the nature of intellectual
stimulation construct, in the sense that presenting an intellectual challenge and getting people to think
about old problems in new ways is more cognitive than the other components of TL and therefore
does not rely on individual’s EI in the same way that individualized consideration, idealized influence
and inspirational motivation do. A more recent study [42] that sought to examine the relations
between EI and the components of TL, contrary to the above findings, revealed that there was a
significant positive relationship between EI and intellectual stimulation.
Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Transactional Leadership
Although transactional leadership style is often viewed narrowly in terms of leader-follower exchange
relationship, it has been suggested that to provide the effective and equitable exchanges characteristic
of contingent reward behaviour, leaders should have abilities and traits associated with EI [8]. This
might explain the consistent findings among researchers indicating positive correlation between EI
and contingent reward. Research has found that contingent reward has a positive relationship with EI
at comparable levels to that of TL [27], and that it has a significant positive correlation with the ability
to monitor one’s emotions and those of others [40]. This construct has also been found to correlate
significantly with total TL and several of its components, including idealized influence, inspirational
motivation and individual consideration. This, according to the researchers suggests a possibility that
“contingent reward” overlaps with the TL components. Another study [10] attributes the positive
correlation between EI and contingent reward to the idea that this dimension shares some common
aspects of TL.
Active MBE has been found to have no significant relationship with EI, while passive MBE and
laissez-faire leadership are known to be negatively related to EI [27]; [22]. According to these
studies, leaders who consider themselves as passive are likely to be unable to identify their own
feelings and emotions, to understand the emotions of others, to manage emotions and to effectively
control them [22].
Contrary to many researchers, a recent study [20] found no relationship between EI and transactional
leadership and thus concluded that the importance of EI in leadership is possibly grossly exaggerated.
The researchers, however, suggested that the conclusion be taken cautiously as some limitations of
MSCEIT with low reliabilities do not allow for such conclusions and instead further research is called
for.
Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Laissez-faire Leadership
Laissez-faire leadership, just as passive MBE, is a form of non-leadership style and thus it is expected
that individuals low on EI would not be effective. Previous studies [29]; [22] reveal negative
relationship between laissez-faire leadership and EI implying that leaders who avoid responsibility,
who are absent when required, and fail to follow up on request for assistance and resist expression of
opinion [10] were more likely unable to identify their own feelings and emotional states, understand
the emotions of others, and to effectively control emotional states in the workplace. In some cases,
the relationship between laissez-faire leadership and EI is negative but insignificant [29].
Fig1.0. Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Leadership Styles

RESEARCH DESIGN
This study adopted correlational research design since the researcher’s objective was simply to
determine the relationship between the constructs of interest with no intention to manipulate the
variables. Survey methodology was used in which case, data were collected through questionnaires
distributed among managers/supervisors and their subordinates. Many research studies linking EI to
leadership have documented the predominance and suitability of survey methods in obtaining data to
measure its relationship with other constructs and this justifies the adoption of this methodology.
Population, Sampling and Sampling Procedure
The target population for this study consisted of leaders, categorized as managers and supervisors of
six banks in Kenya with the approximate total population of 400. The study used a sample size of 300
respondents that composed of 60 leaders and 240 raters. Ten leaders were selected for the study and
in addition, four raters per leader were nominated to provide feedback on the EI and perceived
leadership styles of the respective leaders. Probability and non-probability sampling techniques were
adopted. Convenient sampling was used to identify the banks from which the study would be carried
out. Six main banks were targeted based on the researcher’s knowledge and familiarity with them.
The identification of the banks was influenced by the researcher’s judgment that the employees in
those banks would be willing to participate in the study since there was heavy reliance on the bank
account holders’ introduction of the researcher to the management of the banks. Having identified
and stratified the sample units, simple random sampling method was applied to pick the ten leaders
from each stratum. The leaders were then asked to nominate the raters who would evaluate their level
of EI and the leadership styles.
MEASUREMENT OF VARIABLES
Leaders’ Emotional Intelligence
The leaders’ EI scores were evaluated by administering the Emotional and Social Competency
Inventory (ESCI) to them as well as their respective raters. This is a 72-item questionnaire developed
by the Hay Group [28] The leaders self-rated their emotional quotient using a 5-point Likert-type
scale ranging from 1 (never) to 5 (consistently). Similarly, four raters evaluated each leader’s level of
EI using the same scale. The score for each item in the questionnaire was obtained by summing up the
average scores of the raters (self and others) and dividing by two. Subsequently, the total average
score of each EI cluster was obtained by summing up the average scores of the raters (self and others)
and then dividing by the number of questions in each cluster. The overall average EI score of an
individual leader was obtained by summing up the individual’s self assessment average score and the
total raters’ average score for all clusters and dividing it by two.
Perceived Leadership Styles
Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ-5X) was administered to the four raters of each leader.
The various dimensions of each leadership style were measured using 45 items and the raters
evaluated each leader using a 5-point Likert-type scale ranging from 0 (not at all) to 4 (frequently, if
not always). The mean score of each dimension was obtained by calculating the average values of all
raters for the items and then divided by four – the number of raters
Reliability and Validity of Research Instruments
This study relied on the psychometric property analysis of previous researchers on the reliability and
validity of ESCI and MLQ. Internal consistency estimates (Cronbach’s alpha values) for ESCI
subscales have been found to range from .79 to .91 [14], indicating that the instrument is acceptably
reliable. Similarly, Cronbach’s alpha values for MLQ subscales ranged from .70 to .94 [49]. Thus,
the internal consistency reliability for ESCI and MLQ are generally above the acceptable minimum
standard of .70 recommended [33]. Besides, a pilot test was conducted by administering the
questionnaires to a small sample of twenty (n=20) respondents (who would not take part in the actual
research) from two banks located in Nairobi county and the scores were meaningful; the
questionnaires were duly filled and the responses proved helpful in drawing conclusions. The validity
of ESCI and MLQ is also guaranteed since many researchers and scholars have used them to test EI
and leadership style constructs and there is documentation to that effect. ESCI is supported by robust
validity evidence from research in a variety of organizational contexts worldwide [15]. MLQ is also a
well-established tool that has been used in a variety of settings and broad population, such as industry,
military, primary and secondary schools, marketing and higher education organizations in different
countries [3]. Many studies have also used it as a measure of leadership effectiveness [29]; [34];
[39]; [20].
RESERCH FINDINGS
Out 60 sets of questionnaires distributed, 52 were collected duly filled and these were used for
analysis. The raw data were entered into the computer, grouped into clusters making up components
of EI and leaderships styles, and their average scores calculated. These were then recorded and
analyzed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS).
Hypothesis 1 (H1) stated a positive relationship between EI and TL style. To test this hypothesis, the
Spearman’s Correlation was run between the 52 leaders’ overall EI score and TL style. The results
indicated a moderately strong positive relationship, which was statistically significant (rs = 0.424. p =
0.001) as shown in table 1.0, and therefore hypothesis 1 was supported.
Table1.0. Relationship between EI and Transformational Leadership
Correlations
EI Score TL
Correlation Coefficient 1.000 .424**
Spearman's rho EI Score Sig. (1-tailed) . .001
N 52 52
**. Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (1-tailed).
Leaders who scored highly on EI were perceived as transformational, thus supporting the findings of
several previous studies on EI-TL relationship, although with some variations. In their study, Hunt
and Fitzgerald [31] found that studies that utilized small samples (n<50) and that used same-source
data reported a positive relationship between EI and TL style. On the contrary, studies that used
multi-source data from larger samples found little support for this relationship. The results of the
current study that used multi-rater assessment data from a sample of 52 indicated a positive
relationship between the variables, hence supporting the findings of the researchers that used leader
self-assessment data. This confirms that EI plays a role in predicting TL style. Leaders who are in
touch with their own and others’ emotions and who are able to manage these emotions create an
enabling relationship that inspires and motivates their followers to improved performance.
Further analysis on the relationship between EI and the various components of TL was conducted by
running multiple correlations among the clusters of EI and the five components of TL (table 2.0). The
correlations revealed positive significant relationships among the four clusters of EI: Self-Awareness,
Self-Management, Social Awareness and Relationship Management, and idealized influence attribute
(IA), idealized influence behaviour (IB), inspirational motivation (IM) and individualized
consideration (IC). Highest correlations, however, were found to exist among Relationship
Management and idealized influence, inspirational motivation and individualized consideration.
Although positive correlations among EI clusters and intellectual stimulation existed, the relationships
were insignificant.
Table2.0. Correlations among EI and Transformational Leadership dimensions
Correlations
IA IB IM IS IC
Correlation Coefficient .399** .369** .393** .143 .413**
Self-Awareness
Sig. (1-tailed) .002 .004 .002 .156 .001
Self-Management
Sig. (1-tailed) .000 .000 .000 .068 .003
Spearman's rho
Social Awareness
Sig. (1-tailed) .000 .000 .000 .478 .001
Relationship Correlation Coefficient .566** .498** .587** .087 .650**
Management Sig. (1-tailed) .000 .000 .000 .269 .000
*. Correlation is significant at the 0.05 level (1-tailed).
The positive relationships among EI clusters and the components of TL further confirm the findings
of previous studies that reported positive correlations between EI and idealized influence,
inspirational motivation and individualized consideration [8]; [40]; [22]. Effectively managing
emotions empowers leaders to win the trust and confidence of their followers, to project an attractive
vision and to instill confidence in others that such a vision is achievable. Emotionally intelligent
leaders also appreciate the uniqueness of others and so will treat them as individuals; not just as
members of a group. The link between EI and individualized consideration is in leaders’ traits of
being appreciative, compassionate and responsive to the individual needs of others.
The highest positive correlations among Relationship Management and TL components have
important implications; leadership nests in EI’s Relationship Management captured in influence,
ability to coach and mentor, conflict management, inspirational leadership and teamwork skills. Since
leadership is influence, the leader’s ability to influence others rests on maintaining and managing
relationship with them, hence, leaders with a positive impact on others and who persuade them to gain
their support are effective leaders capable of inspiring and guiding others towards achievement of
goals. This highest correlation therefore implies that leaders who are capable of managing emotions in
their relationship win the trust and confidence of followers, and create conducive environment for the
achievement of goals.
The second hypothesis (H2) stated a positive relationship between EI and Transactional leadership
style. While the correlation results between the overall EI scores and transactional leadership
indicated a positive insignificant relationship between the variables (rs = 0.118, p = 0.202) as depicted
in table 3.0, the correlations among each of the four clusters of EI and the three components of
Transactional Leadership Style: Contingent Reward (CR), Active and Passive MBE showed that there
were significantly positive correlations between the EI clusters and Contingent Reward (CR) as well
as between EI clusters and Active MBE (table 4.0). Both Contingent Reward and Active MBE
correlated highly with Self-Awareness component of emotional intelligence (rs = 0.507, p = 0.000 and
rs = 0.460, p = .000 respectively). Further analysis revealed that there was a negative insignificant
relationship between the four clusters of EI and Passive MBE.
Table3.0. Relationship between EI and Transactional Leadership Style
Correlations
EI Score TSLeadership
Spearman's rho Correlation Coefficient 1.000 .118
EI Score Sig. (1-tailed) . .202
N 52 52
Table4.0. Relationships among EI and Transactional Leadership components
Correlations
Contingent Reward Active MBE Passive MBE
Self- Correlation Coefficient .507** .460** -.072
Awareness Sig. (1-tailed) .000 .000 .307
Self- Correlation Coefficient .456** .338** -.123
Management Sig. (1-tailed) .000 .007 .192
Spearman's rho
Social Correlation Coefficient .410** .304* -.114
Awareness Sig. (1-tailed) .001 .014 .210
Relationship Correlation Coefficient .346** .296* -.040
Management Sig. (1-tailed) .006 .017 .389
Many previous studies found that contingent reward positively related to EI at comparable levels to
that of TL, leading some scholars to argue that this dimension overlaps with TL components; more so
because apart from its relationship with EI, it correlates significantly with total TL and with several of
its components. Emotionally intelligent leaders clearly stipulate the standards of performance, monitor
performance and reward achievement of goals implying that EI supports certain transactional
leadership elements, for example, when they use the contingent reward characteristic in order to
inspire and motivate followers to perform well. This is important for organizational success because
by combining transactional leadership and EI, employees will be more committed to their job and this
increases their job performance. Because of EI, transactional leaders make and fulfill promises by
rewarding employees appropriately and linking those rewards to performance. This inspires
involvement, loyalty, commitment and performance from the followers. This study further found that
contingent reward correlates highly with all the components of TL confirming that it might represent
another subcomponent of TL as suggested by previous researches [8].

Contrary to some studies [27] that found no relationship between active MBE and EI, the current
study revealed a significant positive relationship between the variables. Active MBE describes
leaders who closely monitor performance and intervene readily whenever there are deviations.
Achievement oriented leaders actively monitor performance so as to ensure achievement of goals, and
so EI is expected to be positively related with active MBE. Emotionally intelligent managers monitor
performance and ensure things are done as per standards. Being aware of what goes on around them
enables them to decide when and how to intervene whenever deviations are perceived. The negative
relationship between EI and Passive MBE indicates that emotionally intelligent leaders are proactive
and thus do not wait for things to go wrong before taking action.
The third hypothesis (H3) stated a negative relationship between EI and Laissez-faire Leadership style.
Contrary to the hypothesis, the correlation between the total EI scores of leaders and laissez-faire
leadership (LFL) revealed a positive non significant relationship (rs = 0.067, p = .317) as shown in
table 5.0. However, the correlation results between each of the four clusters of EI and laissez-faire
leadership style indicated a significant negative relationship (table 6.0). This supports the findings of
previous studies and implies that emotionally intelligent leaders will neither avoid responsibility nor
be absent when required and will not take a passive role in leadership. Such leaders have high
relationship management traits like mentoring and coaching, team-working and influencing others by
working with them towards shared goals; on the contrary, leaders avoiding responsibility are unable to
understand their own and others’ feelings and emotions and to effectively control them [10].
Table5.0. Relationship between EI and Laissez-faire Leadership
Correlations
EI Score Laissez-faire Leadership
Correlation Coefficient 1.000 .067
Spearman's rho EI Score Sig. (1-tailed) . .317
N 52 52
Table6.0. Correlations among EI clusters and Laissez-faire Leadership
Correlations
Laissez-faire Leadership
Correlation Coefficient -.357**
Self-Awareness
Sig. (1-tailed) .005
Self-Management
Spearman's rho
Correlation Coefficient -.311*
Social Awareness
Relationship Management
DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS
This study provides supporting evidence for the claim of the importance of EI in leadership process.
Emotional Intelligence’s positive relationship with transformational leadership implies that companies
should incorporate it in their selection of employees for leadership positions. Banks should also
consider interventions for training employees on strategies for developing and nurturing their EI so as
to build an awareness of emotional aspects of leadership competencies in order to respond to the
growing complexity of businesses.
The relationship between EI and intellectual stimulation warrants further investigation. Contrary to
prior studies that found no relationship between EI and this construct, the current study revealed an
insignificant positive relationship. Intellectual stimulation describes open-minded leaders who
encourage creativity and innovation through critical thinking. Emotionally intelligent leaders are
expected to be open-minded and tolerant to new ideas and therefore the insignificant positive
relationship, and more so, the absence of relationship revealed in the previous studies, is a matter that
requires further study.
Although transactional leadership style has been criticized for leading followers to short-term
relationships of exchange with the leader [18] it has some benefits as well and organizations should
not ignore it. The positive relationship between emotional intelligence and contingent reward as well
as active management by exception implies that organizations can leverage on these attributes to
clearly define performance standard, actively monitor performance and reward achievement of goals.
CONCLUSIONS
The results of this study supported many previous studies by confirming a positive relationship
between EI and TL. Multiple correlations among the EI clusters and TL components indicated
significantly positive relationship among all the variables. However, highest correlation was found to
exist between Relationship Management and TL style clusters. Regarding Transactional Leadership
style there were significant positive relationships between EI and Contingent Reward and Active
MBE, with Contingent Reward highly correlating with Self-Awareness component of EI. On the
other hand, the relationship between EI and Passive MBE was negative but insignificant. A
correlation between the overall EI scores of leaders and Laissez-faire leadership indicated an
insignificant positive relationship while EI clusters had significant negative relationships with laissez-
faire leadership, implying that EI is negatively related to passive avoidant leadership.
This study provides evidence that individuals with high levels of EI are more likely to adopt the TL
style ideal for banking institutions. Such individuals are also able to clearly specify performance
standards, to monitor performance and to reward achievement of goals, all of which have positive
effects on the performance. Leaders who abscond their responsibility, who avoid making decisions
and who are passive in leadership do not facilitate achievement of goals and these are associated with
individuals with low levels of EI.
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AUTHORS’ BIOGRAPHY
Sr. Margaret Chepng’eno, lectures at the Catholic University of Eastern Africa and
is currently in charge of the Human Resources at Christamarianne Mission Hospital,
Kenya. She holds a Master’s Degree (Human Resource Management) from The
Catholic University of Eastern Africa.
Dr. Thomas Ngui, is a Lecturer and the Head of the Department of Marketing and
Management at The Catholic University of Eastern Africa. He holds a Ph.D (Human
Resources Management) from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and
Technology. Dr. Ngui has published widely in the area of Management, Corporate
Governance, Human Resources Management, Entrepreneurship and Educational
Management.

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International Journal of Research in Humanities and Social Studies

Volume 4, Issue 2, February 2017, PP1 -12

Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Leadership Styles:

International Journal of Research in Humanities and Social Studies V4 ● I2 ● February 2017 3

Fig1.0. Relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Leadership Styles

8 International Journal of Research in Humanities and Social Studies V4 ● I2 ● February 2017

International Journal of Research in Humanities and Social Studies V4 ● I2 ● February 2017 11

12 International Journal of Research in Humanities and Social Studies V4 ● I2 ● February 2017

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