Does emotional intelligence influence occupational role stress, job satisfaction and life satisfaction? A study in Indian banking sector

Emotions are integral and inseparable part of an individual's life and play significant role in human interactions and organisational performance. Emotional intelligence (EI) describes the mechanisms through which individuals recognise their own and others emotional state. EI considerably impacts work outcomes and job satisfaction. Employees with high EI are considered more resilient due to their intelligence of the underlying causes of stress and developing means to cope with them. Life satisfaction describes the quality of life for an individual. The present study examines the relationship of employee emotional intelligence to occupational role stress, job satisfaction and life satisfaction across public and private sector banks in India. Using systematic random sampling to collect data from 150 managers working at the middle level managerial positions in Indian banking sector, significant differences were found in the occupational role stress dimensions/factors of self-management, empathy, relationship management in across banks in both the sectors. However, for job satisfaction and life satisfaction, no variation of emotional intelligence dimensions was found in either of the banking sectors. This research intends to suggest how EI can be used to achieve work life balance, enhance job satisfaction and help employees effectively cope with their occupational role stress.