Handbook for Developing Emotional and Social Intelligence: Best Practices, Case Studies, and Strategies

14.3. CALLING FOR A UNIFIED APPROACH IN STUDYING SI

The 21st century has seen steady refinement and diversity of ideas on the concept of SI. When criticism of each approach becomes fierce, it seems that the SET approach and the INTERSECT approach stand as opposites to each other. No wonder that the two approaches are still at it after some eighty years of research—today the term SI is fast approaching the century mark!

The SI repertoire of studies largely consists of multiple categorizations of the perceptions of people's behavior in different contexts (Cantor & Kihlstrom, 1987). Its complexity tempts us to include within it all positive human attributes within an interactive context and risk being over-inclusive. The studies together denote ...