trait emotional intelligence and the antecedents, communication and impact of workplace frustration...

Trait Emotional Intelligence and the Antecedents, Communication and Impact of Workplace Frustration

Thomas Rhys [email protected]

@ThomasRhysEvans

Sophie [email protected]

@SophieMBPsS

Dr Gail [email protected]

@GailMSC

mailto:[email protected]



Workplace Frustration

Counterproductive work behaviours…• account for ten-percent of productivity (Belot

and Schröder 2013)• explain nearly twenty-percent of failed

businesses (Coffin 2003) • may be committed by nearly 90% of

employees (Boye and Wasserman 1996)

Dollard’s Frustration-Aggression Hypotheses/ Spector’s Model of Frustration

Goal


Goal Frustration


Goal Frustration Aggression


Goal Frustration Aggression

Performance Inhibition or

Deviance

Change Goal Achievement

Method

Physical or Psychological Withdrawal

Organisational/Interpersonal

Aggression

Individual Differences and Frustration

• State anger related to organisation-directed counterproductive work behaviours

• Trait anger related to interpersonal-directed counterproductive work behaviour (Fox and Spector 1999)

Individual Differences and Frustration

• Reio (2011) found emotional-stability and thrill-seeking significantly predictive of frustration frequency

EI and Workplace Frustration

• Yoo and Salovey (2009) found individuals higher in emotional intelligence ability reported greater levels of frustration after reading about, and experiencing, a frustrating event

Ability Trait

Competency

Trait EI and Workplace Frustration

• Trait emotional intelligence is a collection of ‘emotion-related traits and self-perceived abilities’ (Petrides and Furnham 2006:553)

• Kahn-Greene et al. (2006) found trait emotional intelligence to mediate the relationship between sleep deprivation and response to frustration

Participants and Method

• 60 P’s, all 18 years+ and currently employed• Predominantly female (46), single (45),

educated to undergraduate level (39) with full-time work (34)

• Participants completed the TEIQue (Petrides & Furnham, 2003) before questions about their general reaction to frustration, and a specific recent or memorable frustrating event at work

Predicting Frustration Frequency

Demographics:• Months• Education Level• Sex• Work Type (PT/FT)• Marital Status• AgeTrait EI Facets:• Self-Control• Emotionality• Trait EI Total• Well-Being• Sociability

• Well-being (comprised of self-esteem, trait happiness and trait optimism scales) (B = -.49) the only significant contribution, predicting 24% of variance

Predicting Frustration Intensity


• Total EI score (B = .93), well-being (B = -.76) and self-control (comprised of emotion regulation, impulsivity and stress-management) (B = -.66), predicting 28% of variance

Relationship between EI facets and causes of frustration

• Controlling for the degree of contact with the group in question

• No significant relationships between EI facets and: – equipment– other/senior management– co-workers– lower-ranked employees– products/physical items

as the cause of frustration

Relationship between EI facets and Line Managers as a cause of frustration

• Significant relationships between line managers causing frustration and…

• Well-being (r = -.31, p = .02)• Self-control (r = -.26, p = .04)

Relationship between EI facets and customers as a cause of frustration

• Significant relationships between customers causing frustration and…

• EI total score (r = -.27, p = .04)• Well-being (r = -.26, p = .05)• Emotionality (comprised of emo appraisal, emo

expression, relationship skills and trait empathy)

(r = -.27, p = .04)

EI and Frustration Communication

• Total EI and texting (r = -.26, p = .04)• Well-being and texting (r = -.28, p = .03)• Sociability and Social media (r = -.33, p = .01)

• No significant relationships with calling, emailing or talking

EI and Communicating Frustration

• Sociability and communicating frustrations with co-workers (r = .35, p = .01)

• Sociability and communicating frustrations with line managers (r = .35, p = .01)

• Sociability and communicating frustrations with other/senior managers (r = .36, p = .01)

EI and Communicating Frustration

• Self-control and communicating frustrations with strangers (r = -.34, p = .01)

• No relationships between EI facets and communication with customers or lower-ranked employees

Predicting the Future… Breaking Away


• Self control (B = -.39) was the only significant contribution, predicting 16% of variance

Predicting the Future… Breaking Down


• Total EI (B = -.36) and age (B = -.23) provided significant contributions, predicting 19% of variance

Predicting the Future… Breaking Through


• Education (B = .36) provided the only significant contribution, predicting 13% of variance

Discussion

• EI appears important for many aspects of frustration and could be a valuable field for training/development or recruitment should further results corroborate findings

• Small sample – work is on-going to gain a large diverse sample for more detailed and contextualised analyses

Trait Emotional Intelligence and the Antecedents, Communication

and Impact of Workplace Frustration

Thomas Rhys [email protected]

@ThomasRhysEvans

Sophie [email protected]

@SophieMBPsS

Dr Gail [email protected]

@GailMSC




trait emotional intelligence and the antecedents, communication and impact of workplace frustration...

Documents

frustration reio

work slide

workplace frustration

variance slide

frustration state anger

gailmsc slide

greater levels of frustration

trait happiness