The relationship between emotional intelligence and corporate culture : a comparative study across organisational frameworks in Malta

Abstract

This research study investigates the importance and relationship of Emotional Intelligence and corporate culture, with a major focus on Clan, Adhocracy, Hierarchy and Market cultural types. The sample includes 200 participants working in private and public organisations, where a cross-sectional examination has been utilized to measure the level of Emotional Intelligence across the different areas of workplace culture. The study implemented the use of ANOVA, Pearson correlation analysis, and t-test to fully analyse the research subject. Using this statistical analysis, the results showed significant correlations between Emotional Intelligence and specific cultural types. Based on the evidence in the results and findings, several recommendations have been offered to guide organisations to harvest the right environment that fosters Emotional Intelligence for its enormous benefits to the employees and its implications for organisations. The evidence from this study indicates that Emotional Intelligence is directly linked to corporate culture and is affected by the norms and beliefs of the cultural setting. Adhocracy culture is set to have the highest correlation with higher scores of Emotional Intelligence, indicating that this type of cultural setting greatly impacts employees with higher emotional intelligence. Several recommendations were also provided to enhance Emotional Intelligence, through leadership, management development, nurturing, and a list of improvements to benefit private / public organisations.