The Emotional IQ Test

I took this test at Tickle way back October 17, 2002. I'm really a fan of Tickle and at that time, this is the only site that I take tests and quizzes from. It was still known as Emode back then. Anyway, below is the full report of my Emotional IQ test result.

Your Emotional IQ score is: 118 The above chart shows where you fall on the Emotional IQ scale compared to others. You scored higher than 88% of other test takers. Your Emotional IQ measures how well your emotions guide you towards smart decisions. In fact, increasingly, researchers are pointing to Emotional IQs as better indicators of overall success in life than traditional IQ tests alone. Healthy relationships and flourishing careers are impossible without interacting successfully with others. Even someone who possesses a genius Intellectual Quotient (IQ) can miss out on the wisdom that comes from understanding another human being. What makes Tickle's Emotional IQ test more comprehensive than others, is that we structured the test to actually isolate different interpersonal skills and how well you use them to your benefit. As such, each of your scores on the 4 emotional intelligence dimensions, Perception, Expression, Empathy, and Emotional Management, are independent of one another, despite the fact that only in combination do they yield your true EIQ. That also means that you can score high on all dimensions, low on all dimensions, and any permutation in between. There are plenty of reasons to understand where your strengths and weakness lie. In so doing, you can play to your strengths and work on improving your skills on all the dimensions. As we noted in your initial results, your emotional strength, or the dimension on which you scored the highest is Expression. For an in-depth look at those dimensions, read on about your Emotional IQ profile.

The psychological community agrees that the dimensions portrayed in the above chart are the cornerstone of your Emotional IQ. Here's what they mean in this context. Perception Your perception score measures your ability to perceive other people's emotions. It also indicates your innate ability to recognize other people's emotions through nonverbal communication channels. In other words, it gauges how well you pick up on the things people aren't saying. And that's a powerful skill because nonverbal communications — body language, facial expressions, touch, tone, and appearance — often convey a person's true feelings. In fact, some researchers estimate that 93% of all communication is nonverbal. The higher your score, the stronger your edge on the competition. Expression Your expression score measures the extent to which you allow yourself to feel and to express your own emotions. It gauges how comfortable you are in expressing the full range of emotions — both positive and negative. Being able to express a range of emotions implies that you understand the difference between what you really feel as opposed to acting in the manner you think you are supposed to feel. When you get better at expressing emotions, you also accept those emotions as valid — and valuable — in making decisions. Empathy Your empathy score represents your ability to understand and appreciate other people's points of view. Experts agree that your ability to see things from perspectives different from your own will make you a better communicator and, in general, a more perceptive individual. It also indicates how much benefit of the doubt you are likely to give people and how much leeway you give them before you form conclusions about them, their ideas, or their motives. Emotional Management Your emotional management score reflects how much you let your emotions affect the world around you. It measures how good you are at understanding your emotions and acting upon them. Emotional management also gauges whether you let your emotions drive your actions or whether you tend to contain them and base your actions on things more objective than your emotions. Now that you better understand the dimensions that make up your Emotional IQ, we can take a look at your individual scores. Remember, like everything in life, you can always improve your rating on these dimensions. In fact, Tickle's test is designed to help you do just that so you can more easily get what you want in your life.

The perception scale You scored 6 out of 10 on the perception scale. You are fairly adept at picking up on non-verbal cues. You're relatively sensitive to subtleties in people's expressions and gestures, and, in most cases, can feel out the "vibe" of a situation. However, there are times you've missed signals which is why you could still stand to spend more time honing your powers of perception. For example, if you noticed someone glancing at their watch during a conversation, you may or may not be aware of the various signals this action could be sending. The time checker could be anxious to end the conversation — or they could just be checking the time. You'd want to look for further signs — perhaps the tone of their voice, whether or not they're focusing on you or are distracted — to get at the meaning of their gesture. Chances are, you would have interpreted the situation correctly. However, there are times when you may have missed this person's cues that signaled they were in a hurry and perhaps did not have time to chat with you. As a result, they may have been annoyed by your attempts to prolong the conversation. The underlying messages of people's behavior are sometimes complex and inaccessible to us. As a result, it's always best to pay equal attention to what is being said and what is not being said. The goal is not to focus on just one aspect of non-verbal communication but to integrate all the signals to increase your perceptiveness.

The expression scale You scored 7 out of 10 on the expression scale. Your score indicates that you are relatively comfortable in expressing your emotions. However, you are not as open with your emotions as you could be and may even be embarrassed to acknowledge or express them. You are fairly in tune with both your conscious and unconscious feelings and why you are feeling a particular way. For example, if you'd been working for a promotion at work you might have been confiding in a close co-worker about wanting a certain position. Then, a couple days later you might learn the position you'd wanted has been given to your co-worker! Although rationally you understand she wasn't vying for the position behind your back and it was a matter of circumstance that she got the position over you, you still feel disappointment and anger. Chances are, because you are someone who is relatively comfortable expressing emotions, you probably won't hide your disappointment because it's not "rational." Instead, you might realize this is a situation that needs to be addressed between the two of you. You know that ignoring this touchy situation could breed resentment further down the road. Simply put, you have a need to clear the air. Whether you do this effectively or sensitively is another story, but the point is you do not waste energy protecting yourself from what you feel. Sometimes people mistakenly equate being self-aware or relying on your emotions for your responses as a sign of weakness. This may be a problem for you. In the above example, it might be hard for you to express disappointment to your co-worker because it shows you have a vulnerable side, that you felt hurt. However, you are self-aware enough to understand that all the intellectualizing and rationalizing in the world cannot erase your discontent. After all, you recognize you will be compromising your happiness if don't tend to your emotional needs.

Myth 1: Emotions are more primitive than reason. Emotions originate in the brain just like reason, even though you might feel them in your heart or in your gut. They are equally valid when making decisions, the key to making informed decisions it to consult both sides of your brain. Myth 2: Clamping down on your emotions is a sign of strength. Unfortunately, too many people mistakenly believe that being able to turn off their emotions makes them powerful. Conversely, some people think that feeling and emotion gives you permission to act upon it. The key to managing your emotions is to strike the right balance. You must first allow yourself to feel your raw emotions, then you must temper them with the rational side of your brain. You're so angry you want to punch someone? Then let yourself feel that emotion, just stop short of acting on it and make those emotions available to your rational side to balance out. Myth 3: Some emotions are bad to feel. All emotions are informative. Just because our emotions sometimes put us in an unpleasant state does not mean they should be avoided. Our emotions can tell us when there is something in our environment that needs fixing. Myth 4: The best judgments are ones made without emotion. Our society has valued the rational parts of our brain to the detriment of the emotional parts. Think about how many violent acts are committed because people don't know how to effectively deal with their emotions and instead simply snap. To achieve true harmony within ourselves, both sides of the brain need to be acknowledged and attended to.

The empathy scale You scored a 5 out of 10 on the empathy scale. You respond to others with your heart and soul. Most of the time, people sense your genuineness and commitment to being a compassionate person. You tend to not only observe other people's situations, but also understand the importance of empathizing instead of criticizing. And in general, you are not one to put down others simply to boost your own self-esteem because you are better at putting yourself in other people's shoes than some. You are astute enough to know that sometimes you won't have all the information about another person you need to make a fair judgment of them or their actions. You won't know their background, their personal or financial situation, or another key element that might be driving them to do something a certain way. But even armed with this awareness, you may need to put effort into refraining from easy criticism. Too often people put down others to boost their own self-esteem. It's important to keep in mind that sometimes we can't see all of the situational pressures that influence how other people act. Before deciding that someone's behavior is due to a flawed personality, ask yourself: is there anything about the person's situation that may have led to this? It's wise to understand that you're not perfect and someday you might need others to cut you some slack, too. All of us need people in our lives who honor our individuality and imperfections.

The emotional management scale You scored a 6 out of 10 the emotional management scale. Most of the time you recognize that feeling emotions and acting upon them are two separate things. Whether you believe that all emotions and moods need to be experienced as they occur, or that emotions and moods need to be channeled into something beneficial, you see yourself in charge of how your emotions will impact your life. Although you are fairly adept at this skill, there are probably times when you've acted too quickly. Ideally, emotions should serve as a guide, not a dictator, for our behavior. Sometimes feelings can be so strong that they hijack our stability and good sense. Fortunately you understand that balance is the key here. You have a sense that managing your emotions and psychologically taking care of yourself are critical life skills. You are aware that although you may not be able to control the type of emotion you experience or when you experience it, you do have control over its duration and the extent to which it controls your behavior. Putting this realization into practice is sometimes hard for you, but it's one you're most likely dedicated to.

If you want to take the Emotional IQ Test, just go to http://www.tickle.com, click on the Tests tab, click PhD-Certified, click "see all" link under Popular Tests, then find the The Emotional IQ Test.