情商的概念最早是由美国哈佛大学心理学家丹尼尔.高尔曼（Daniel Goleman）在其《情绪智力Emotional Intelligence》（又译作《情感智商》）一书提出的。其英文全称为Emotional Intelligence Quotient，简称EQ。很多时候也翻译为情感智商或情绪商数，是相对于智商而言提出的与一个人成才和事业成功有关的一种全新的概念。
情商还有另一个名字，就是“软技能”。
情商的提出，动摇了智力决定一切的统治地位，使人们进一步认识到，一个人的成才，不仅要靠智商，而且要靠情商。丹尼尔.高尔曼甚至指出：“真正决定一个人能否成功的关键，是情商而不是智商。”而心理学家广泛而深入的研究也表明：人在一生中能否成功、快乐，主要取决于其情商的高低。
最新的心理学理论认为，人的大脑可以分成两大部分，即管理情绪的部分和管理思考的部分。前者代表情商，后者代表智商。
智力（智能）是一种综合性的认知能力，其基本构成要素为注意力、观察力、记忆力、想象力和思维能力，其中思维能力是智力的核心，智商就是对一个人的智力因素的测定。
根据丹尼尔.高尔曼提出的框架，情商由以下的五个部分组成：
Emotional Intelligence Components情绪智力（情商）的组成要素
| Comp.要素 | Definition定义 | Hallmarks主要标志 | Example示例 |
| Self-awareness
自我认知 |
Knowing one’s emotions, strengths, weaknesses, drives, values, and goals—and their impact on others
了解自己的情绪、优势、弱点、内心的驱动力、价值观和目标，以及这一切对于他人的影响 |
Self confidence自信
Realistic self-assessment 对自己的切实评价 Self-deprecating sense of humor 自嘲性的幽默 Thirst for constructive criticism对建设性批评的渴望 |
A manager knows tight deadlines bring out the worst in him. So he plans his time to get work done well in advance.
一名经理知道严格的期望要求会给他极大的挑战，因此他有计划地对时间进行安排，以便将工作提前做好。 |
| Self-regulation
自我调节 |
Controlling or redirecting disruptive emotions and impulses
控制或引导自己的负面情绪和冲动 |
Trustworthiness可信任度
Integrity正直 Comfort with ambiguity and change在面对不确定性和变革时保持冷静 |
When a team botches a presentation, its leader resists the urge to scream. Instead, she considers possible reasons for the failure, explains the consequences to her team, and explores solutions with them.当一个团队的表现很差时，其领导不仅能够忍住当时的愤怒，还能够冷静地寻找失败的原因，向团队成员说明失败的后果，并与团队成员共同寻求解决方案 |
| Motivation
自我激励 |
Being driven to achieve for the sake of achievement
为获得成就而持续努力 |
A passion for the work itself and for new challenges应对工作及新的挑战的热情
Unflagging energy to improve坚定不移地提升自己 Optimism in the face of failure在失败时保持乐观 |
A portfolio manager at an investment company sees his fund tumble for three consecutive quarters. Major clients defect. Instead of blaming external circumstances, she decides to learn from the experience—and engineers a turnaround.一名投资公司的经理看到所管理的基金连续三个季度下跌，且大客户选择离开时，她没有抱怨环境，而是决定从失败中学习，并筹划如何扭转局势。 |
| Empathy
同理心 |
Considering others’ feelings, especially when making decisions
考虑他人的感受，尤其是在作出决定时 |
Expertise in attracting and retaining talent吸引和留住人才的能力
Ability to develop others发展他人的能力 Sensitivity to cross-cultural deferences对不同文化的敏感 |
An American consultant and her team pitch a project to a potential client in Japan. Her team interprets the client’s silence as disapproval, and prepares to leave. The consultant reads the client’s body language and senses interest. She continues the meeting, and her team gets the job.一名美国咨询师带领团队竞标一个日本客户的项目，她的团队认为客户的沉默即否定。但她通过解读客户的肢体语言看到了客户的兴趣所在，他继续与客户沟通并获得了项目。 |
| Social skills
社交技能 |
Managing relationships to move people in desired directions
通过管理与他人的关系，影响他人朝所期望的方向行动 |
Effectiveness in leading change有效地引领变革
Persuasiveness说服他人的能力 Extensive networking深入的社交能力 Expertise in building and leading teams建立和领导团队的专业能力 |
A manager wants his company to adopt a better Internet strategy. He finds kindred spirits and assembles a de facto team to create a prototype Web site. He persuades allies in other divisions to fund the company’s participation in a relevant convention. His company forms an Internet division—and puts him in charge of it.一名经理想让他的公司采用一个更好的互联网策略。他在公司中找到了同盟并组成了一个事实上的团队去打造一个成功的网站样本。他同时动力说服自己在其他部门中的支持者对项目进行投入。最终，公司成立了独立的互联网部门并将其交由他领导。 |
他同时还给出了一个如何提升情绪智力的例子：
STRENGTHENING YOUR EI 如何提升你的情绪智力？
– Use practice and feedback from others to strengthen specific EI skills.在人际中实践并从其他人处获得反馈进行提升。
– Example: An executive learned from others that she lacked empathy, especially the ability to listen. She wanted to fix the problem, so she asked a coach to tell her when she exhibited poor listening skills. She then role-played incidents to practice giving better responses; for example, not interrupting. She also began observing executives skilled at listening-and imitated their behavior.
– 示例：一名高管从他人处得知自己缺乏同理心，尤其是倾听他人的能力。她想解决这个问题。于是她聘请了一名教练，并邀请教练在她不倾听他人时，明确指出问题所在。同时，她坚持演练倾听的技巧，比如在谈话中不打断对方等。她同时也开始观察那些善于倾听的高管们的行为并加以模仿。
———————————————————————-
Daniel Goleman指出，情绪智力的培养与思考能力（智商）的培养是完全不同的。他在《Can Emotional Intelligence Be Learned?》一文中指出，决定一个人的情商的因素既有先天的，也有后天的。他说“科学证明，一个人的情商的确与其出生相关，但同时心理学的研究也说明，一个人的成长和生活同样也会影响其情商的发展（Scientific inquiry strongly suggests that there is a genetic com- ponent to emotional intelligence. Psychological and developmental research indicates that nurture plays a role as well.）”，关于后天成长对情商的影响，他举例说，“有一点是确定的，就是一个人的情商可以随着其年龄的增长而增长。而且这一现象可以很容易观察到，就是一个人会随着其年龄的增长而变得‘成熟’。One thing is certain: Emotional intelligence increases with age. There is an old-fashioned word for the phenomenon: maturity.”
同时，Daniel Goleman也指出了一些培养情绪智力的误区，他说，“……不幸的是，太多的用于情商培训的课程，尤其是领导力提升课程，是在浪费时间和金钱。原因很简单：它们将重点放错了地方，它们仍然在培养人们负责思考的左脑。（Unfortunately, far too many training programs that intend to build leadership skills—including emotional intelligence—are a waste of time and money. The problem is simple: They focus on the wrong part of the brain）.” 他指出，“一个人的情商主要由其大脑的边缘系统管理，这个边缘系统主要处理一个人的感受、冲动和驱动力。研究表明，对于边缘系统进行训练的最好方式是激励、深入的体验和练习，还有自他人处获取其行为对他人影响的反馈等。而对于负责分析和逻辑思考的左半脑的训练，则可以用读书、讨论等传统教学方式完成。（Emotional intelligence is born largely in the neurotransmitters of the brain’s limbic system, which governs feelings, impulses, and drives. Research indicates that the limbic system learns best through motivation, extended practice, and feedback. Compare this with the kind of learning that goes on in the neocortex, which governs analytical and technical ability. The neocortex grasps concepts and logic. It is the part of the brain that figures out how to use a computer or make a sales call by reading abook.）”
Daniel Goleman在该文章中还指出，如果用传统的培养思考能力的方式去培养情商，不仅不能够有效地提升情商，还会对一个人的工作绩效有负面的影响。（Not surprisingly—but mistakenly—it is also the (left) part of the brain targeted by most training programs aimed at enhancing emotional intelligence. When such programs take, in effect, a neocortical approach, my research with the Consortium for Research on Emotional Intelligence in Organizations has shown they can even have a negative impact on people’s job performance.）
关于情商的培养，Daniel Goleman指出，“如果要培养一个人的情绪智力，必须将培养聚焦于其大脑的边缘系统。这些培训课程必须致力于帮助学员打破旧习惯以形成新习惯。这不仅需要比传统的知识型培训更多的时间，而且还需要针对学员个体的训练。（To enhance emotional intelligence, organizations must refocus their training to include the limbic system. They must help people break old behavioral habits and establish new ones. That not only takes much more time than conventional training programs, it also requires an individualized approach.）”
————————————————————————————————
