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Article Title:
An Assessment of the Effect of Emotional Intelligence On Leadership Performance in Local Government Administration
by Olannye, A. Peter

Abstract:
There is growing evidence that fundamental ethical stances in life stem from underlying emotional capacities. Since the local communities are the engines of national development, they should be managed by transforming leadership which requires managing emotions in order to get things done effectively. This study examines the impact of emotional intelligence on leadership performance in the context of local Government administration in Delta State, Nigeria. A survey research design method was employed. The sample objects were130 staff stratified into top and middle management levels. They were representations from six departments in Directorate of Local Government Services and fifteen departments from the Local Government Commission. A 25-item validated structured questionnaire served as the research instrument. The correlation and multiple regression analysis were used as the major analytical tools. The findings revealed that self awareness as a dimension of EI exhibited the strongest direct effect on leadership performance in the local government administration, which indicates that self awareness is important psychological insight and key to self control that fosters EI. The Study concludes that Managing emotions through EI is found to be a critical element to leadership performance, this implies that carefully managed emotions are associated with successful outcomes which can drive employees loyalty and commitment. Finally it is recommended that effective leadership requires training and retraining on EI skills in order to inculcate the need to understand ones moods, emotions and drives and their impact on better employees morale in the work place.

Keywords: emotional intelligence, self awareness, social skills, self regulations, managing emotions

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