Emotional Intelligence and Leadership Effectiveness Mediating Role of Interpersonal Communication

Abstract

Leadership effectiveness has become an essential determinant of organizational success in an increasingly complex and dynamic work environment. Modern organizations require leaders who not only possess technical knowledge but also demonstrate strong emotional capabilities and communication skills to manage diverse teams. Emotional intelligence refers to an individual's ability to recognize, understand, manage, and utilize emotions effectively in interpersonal interactions. Scholars have argued that emotionally intelligent leaders are more capable of building trust, resolving conflicts, motivating employees, and enhancing organizational outcomes. Despite growing attention toward emotional intelligence in leadership research, limited empirical studies have examined the mechanisms through which emotional intelligence contributes to leadership effectiveness. In particular, interpersonal communication has received insufficient attention as a potential mediating factor that links emotional intelligence with leadership outcomes. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between emotional intelligence and leadership effectiveness and to investigate the mediating role of interpersonal communication in this relationship. Drawing upon emotional intelligence theory and social exchange theory, the study proposes that leaders with higher emotional intelligence are more capable of establishing effective interpersonal communication with employees, which in turn improves leadership effectiveness. A quantitative research design is adopted and data are collected from employees working in various organizational sectors. Structural equation modeling is applied to analyze the relationships among variables. The findings demonstrate that emotional intelligence has a significant positive effect on leadership effectiveness. The results also indicate that emotional intelligence significantly influences interpersonal communication, which subsequently enhances leadership effectiveness. Furthermore, interpersonal communication partially mediates the relationship between emotional intelligence and leadership effectiveness. These findings highlight the importance of emotional competencies and communication skills in leadership development programs. The study contributes to the leadership literature by providing empirical evidence that interpersonal communication serves as a crucial mechanism through which emotional intelligence influences leadership effectiveness.