Book and Media Reviews

Abstract

The Wisdom in Feeling: Psychological Processes in Emotional Intelligence L. Feldman Barrett and Peter Salovey (Eds.). New York: Guilford Press (www.guilford.com). 2002. This is a book filled with gems. It is a must read for those who wish to have the notion of emotional intelligence unpacked in a thoughtful and rigorous manner. The premise of the book, and the chapters in it, is that the emotions are a higher order of intelligence and that it is only out of the marriage of reason with affect that clarity with passion results. The purpose of this volume is to examine the component processes of emotional intelligence. This is the first volume that reviews theory and research on the psychological components that constitute emotional intelligence. Rather than focusing on how to measure emotional intelligence the volume examines such component processes as perceiving and appraising of emotion, using emotion to facilitate thought, the understanding and communicating of emotion concepts and the managing of emotions in one's self and others. Part 1 of this volume deals with processes involved in perceiving and identifying emotions in self and others. In this part research on the voice, the face and the effect of learning on emotional intelligence (EI) is covered and we are introduced to the notion of vocal EI and facial EI. The making of this discrimination and the attendant rigorous review of research introduces us to one of the first gems offered by the book. This takes us away from the global notion of EI as some type of social emotional capacity into exploring what truly is entailed in being emotionally perceptive. The authors of the first chapter on the vocal acoustics of EI inform us that four main components contribute to vocal EI. These are: the direct effect of sound; the acquisition of learned responses to affectively significant sounds; the extent to which a person can empathize or draw accurate inferences concerning a vocalizer's state and finally; the flexibility and functionality of a person's response to the vocalization heard. In addition we learn that knowledge about the vocalizer interacts with prosodie features of the vocal cues to produce an impression in the listener. This first chapter is like an "open sesame" into the world of emotional intelligence. It begins to reveal the hidden strands that make up the emotional worlds in which we live. After being introduced to the magic of sound we are introduced to the mysteries of reading the face. The authors review research that suggests that the ability to facially express emotion and to perceive facial emotion may result from separate processes. Emotional regulation of facial expression is yet another important aspect of facial EI demonstrating that facial EI is not global construct but rather a multidimensional skill. Together the chapters in Part 1 characterize how we come to use certain kinds of cues as emotionally meaningful and certain types of information as emotionally relevant. By focusing on the components of emotional intelligence we begin to get a much richer idea of what this construct means and in my view this has important implications for treatment. For example, being introduced to evidence that vocal EI, which includes at least skills in the production of acoustic features to influence others as well as skills in perceiving and responding to others' acoustic productions, confers advantages on both sender and receiver, opens up a world of possibilities for treatment. Emotion awareness training can help people become aware of the impact of their vocal quality on others and be more sensitive to vocal cues from others. In addition therapists can be trained to listen to their client's voices as an indicator of what they are. Similarly increasing both client's and therapist's awareness of facial cues will greatly enhance their communicative abilities. …