Emotional Intelligence of Local and Overseas Graduates in Real Estate Industry in China

Abstract

There is still limited research that investigates emotional intelligence in the context of the real estate sector in China, despite the rapid growth of the industry. Furthermore, there has been an exponential increase in the number of Chinese students studying overseas. Underpinned by these tendencies, this research investigates the levels of emotional intelligence of overseas and local graduates in the real estate sector in China. Data were collected using a survey of 140 employees and semi-structured interviews of four human resource managers in six Grade One state-owned real estate companies in China. The findings suggest that emotional intelligence influences the levels of interpersonal skills, represented by communication skills and teamwork behaviour. However, there is no difference in the levels of emotional intelligence between overseas and local graduates, suggesting that there are other factors that influence emotional intelligence development. Overseas graduates also seem to have greater difficulties than local graduates from elite universities to find jobs in the real estate sector. This suggests that international study experience is no longer adequate; instead, various contextualised interpersonal skills are needed to meet work demands in China. Developing emotional intelligence has been found to promote success across cultures and is a way to meet the demands of today's work environments in the real estate industry in China.