The Relationship between Leader Emotional Intelligence and Employee Job Satisfaction

Hlanganipai Ngirande; Harry Tinashe Timothy

Authors

Hlanganipai Ngirande University of Limpopo, Department of Business Management, School of Economics & Law Private Bag x1106. Sovenga, 0727, South Africa
Harry Tinashe Timothy University of Fort Hare, Department of Industrial Psychology, Private Bag x1314, Alice, 5200, South Africa

Abstract

The concepts of Emotional intelligence and employee Job satisfaction are of high interest in the modern work environment. They serve as a competitive edge in personal and organizational life. However, there is little information known about the two variables’ relationships especially in the South African electric power industry. The purpose of this study is to investigate the relationship between leader emotional intelligence and employee job satisfaction. A quantitative research design was utilised. The sample for this study consists of 92 randomly selected respondents from two strata (middle level organizational leaders and lower level employees). A self-administered questionnaire was administered to respondents; drawn from a selected Eskom branch in South Africa. The data collected was analysed using SPSS version 20.0. Correlation statistics revealed statistically significant relationship between leader emotional intelligence and employee job satisfaction. The value of the findings of this study lies in the explanatory utility of the identified relationships between leader emotional intelligence and employee job satisfaction.

DOI: 10.5901/mjss.2014.v5n6p35