How to Assess a Candidate’s EQ During Interviews

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stressed african american businessman banging head against wall Countless studies are beginning to show the positive link between Emotional Intelligence and high performance, that is, a higher EQ will lead to higher performance. In fact, there is a growing body of research making the case that EQ is a more important factor than IQ or technical ability in determining the success of a candidate. Two studies in particular emphasize the importance of EQ as the key selection criteria. First, a study by Kenexa of 1000 sales people across different companies and sectors showed that the most successful sales people demonstrate emotional courage and persistence. Also, another study by Goleman of 200 companies found that two-thirds of the performance differential between individuals was linked to EQ, whereas only one-third was attributable to IQ.

The evidence strongly suggests that EQ should be a key selection criteria and should be assessed during behavioral questioning, the most reliable form of candidate assessment. But, what should interviewers be looking for as signs of high EQ during behavioral interviewing? Well, a study by Spencer in 1997 found that the key emotional competencies that separated the average from stars were: Influence, Team Leadership, Organizational Awareness, self-confidence, Achievement Drive, and Leadership.And you’ll need to be questioning in these areas to begin examining EQ levels of candidates.

But, what are the signs you should be looking for that indicate high EQ? Well, when questioning candidates and listening for responses, you should be aware that the answers are multi-layered and can contain many signs of a candidate’s EQ level. Here are some of the signs of high EQ, based on the book EQ for Everybody by Steve Hein:
 

  • Candidate can express feelings clearly and directly and can put together three word sentences starting with, “I feel…” and can explain why they feel or felt the way they do about an issue.
  • Can read body language really well
  • Is not dominated by negative emotions such as: Fear, worry, guilt, powerlessness, victimization, obligation
  • Is self motivated
  • Does not internalize failure
  • Is interested in other people’s feelings
  • Does not feel forced
  • Is not dependent on others
  • Is able to balance feelings with reason, logic and reality

Clearly, in order to make sure that you get to observe these signs, when designing your questions, you’ll need to have several questions focused on emotionally challenging situations such as conflict, layoffs, mismanagement, business slump, firing staff, etc. to really see signs of their emotional competency. You’ll also want to consider signs of low EQ, which are largely the opposite of the signs written above, but there are some additional signs, including:

  • Gets locked into one course of action that defies common sense and reasons
  • Uses profanities to express themselves
  • Rigidly clings on to beliefs
  • Complains a lot or pretends nothing is wrong
  • Attack others for criticizing them. Defensive
  • Shows no remorse
  • Struggle to admit mistakes

Of course, some of the signs of low EQ can be easily hidden in an interview and signs of high EQ can be manufactured; so interviewers will need to probe for authenticity and use their judgment when considering these signs. Alternately, you could consider observing them over several interviews in different settings, such as formal and semi formal and this will increase your chance of getting beneath the facade to the truth.

By Kazim Ladimeji