A study on relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Coping Stress at Workplace

Abstract

Stress is a state of mental pressure which may cause psychological, physical, and behavioural problems. Dealing with stress at work-place in today’s setting has taken prime importance. Therefore, knowing the sources of stress and the strategies to cope with the it are very important. Emotional Intelligence is one of the methods to deal with distress. Simply put, it is the ability to limit negative feelings of anger, stress and anxiety, and focus on positive feelings of patience, confidence and empathy. Emotional Intelligence acts as a buffer in work related outcomes as workers are stressed and insecure in work environment. The current study's goal was to determine the relationship between employees emotional intelligence and stress levels at workplace. For the study, a representative group of 50 employees were chosen working in Project team of Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (Refineries Division) out of total 200 employees. The standardised measures of Goleman’s Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire and Perceived Stress Level Questionnaire, were utilised to collect answers using an online survey questionnaire. The Pearson correlation approach, t- statistics, ANOVA and Regression were used to examine the data. According to the study's results, there was significant negative relationship found between employees Emotional Intelligence (EI) and their stress levels at workplace. High EI meant employees are better prepared to cope-up with stress. Further study results also showed that employees emotional Intelligence and their stress levels were individualistic in nature rather gender specific.