The principle of regulatory fit implies that managers should demonstrate more transformational leadership, and refrain from critical or detached behavior, if their subordinates exhibit a promotion focus or extraverted personality. Furthermore, emotional intelligence should enhance the capacity of managers to adapt their leadership style and accommodate these characteristics of employees. To assess these propositions, 263 pairs of managers and subordinates completed questionnaires that assess the emotional intelligence and leadership style of the manager as well as the regulatory focus and organizational commitment of the subordinate. Critical, detached leadership was especially likely to be inversely related to the commitment of subordinates who demonstrated a promotion focus. Nevertheless, relative to other managers, individuals who reported emotional intelligence were not more likely to demonstrate transformational leadership, or abstain from critical, detached behavior, when their subordinates focused on promotion. A second study, in which 166 pairs of nurses and their supervisors participated, revealed that managers who claimed to understand the emotions of other individuals seemed to curb their critical, detached behavior when their subordinates were extraverted. Taken together, these findings suggest that emotional intelligence might enhance the capacity of managers to adapt their leadership style appropriately, but only in some contexts.
Emotional Intelligence and Project Success: The Roles of Transformational Leadership and Organizational Commitment
