Krasnow Institute for Advanced Study, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA 22030, USA.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2009 Dec 29;106(52):22486-91. doi: 10.1073/pnas.0912568106. Epub 2009 Dec 22.
Emotional intelligence (EI) refers to a set of competencies that are essential features of human social life. Although the neural substrates of EI are virtually unknown, it is well established that the prefrontal cortex (PFC) plays a crucial role in human social-emotional behavior. We studied a unique sample of combat veterans from the Vietnam Head Injury Study, which is a prospective, long-term follow-up study of veterans with focal penetrating head injuries. We administered the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test as a valid standardized psychometric measure of EI behavior to examine two key competencies of EI: (i) Strategic EI as the competency to understand emotional information and to apply it for the management of the self and of others and (ii) Experiential EI as the competency to perceive emotional information and to apply it for the integration into thinking. The results revealed that key competencies underlying EI depend on distinct neural PFC substrates. First, ventromedial PFC damage diminishes Strategic EI, and therefore, hinders the understanding and managing of emotional information. Second, dorsolateral PFC damage diminishes Experiential EI, and therefore, hinders the perception and integration of emotional information. In conclusion, EI should be viewed as complementary to cognitive intelligence and, when considered together, provide a more complete understanding of human intelligence.
情绪智力（EI）是指一套至关重要的能力，这些能力是人类社会生活的基本特征。尽管 EI 的神经基础实际上还不清楚，但众所周知，前额叶皮层（PFC）在人类社会情感行为中起着至关重要的作用。我们研究了一个来自越南头部损伤研究的独特的战斗退伍军人样本，这是一个对有局灶性穿透性头部损伤的退伍军人进行前瞻性、长期随访的研究。我们采用了 Mayer-Salovey-Caruso 情绪智力测验，作为 EI 行为的有效标准化心理测量学测量，以检验 EI 的两个关键能力：（i）战略 EI，即理解情感信息并将其应用于自我和他人管理的能力；（ii）体验式 EI，即感知情感信息并将其应用于思维整合的能力。结果表明，EI 的关键能力取决于不同的 PFC 前额叶皮层。首先，腹内侧前额叶皮层损伤会降低战略 EI，从而阻碍对情感信息的理解和管理。其次，背外侧前额叶皮层损伤会降低体验式 EI，从而阻碍对情感信息的感知和整合。总之，EI 应该被视为认知智力的补充，当两者一起考虑时，可以更全面地理解人类智力。
