Emotion recognition ability and career success: Assessing the roles of GMA and conscientiousness

Abstract

Previous research has found that the ability to accurately recognize emotions expressed by others correlates with many vocational outcomes. However, these correlations might be due to third variables. We hypothesized that ERA for faces would indeed predict occupational status when controlling for age but that this relation would be erased when jointly controlling for General Mental Ability (GMA) and conscientiousness. In our study of 182 gainfully employed individuals, as hypothesized, ERA was positively associated with occupational status when controlling for age. This relation became nonsignificant when we additionally controlled for GMA and conscientiousness; however, ERA and conscientiousness were uncorrelated. Implications and limitations are discussed.