The Relationship Between Emotional Intelligence and a Voluntary Midlife Career Change Among Women.

As the current workforce approaches midlife and the replacement younger work force gap widens, organizations are faced with the dilelmma as to how to retain their midlife workers. Many of the seasoned professionals which organizations are seeking to retain will be women workers who are contemplating the making of a volunatry midlife career change. In order to investigate this problem, this mixed sequential research study explored emotional intelligence components such as self-actualization, self-awareness, self-esteem, and problem-solving which may be related to a voluntary midlife career change among women. Quantitative statistical analysis (such as the independent samples t-test and chi square analysis) was performed on data collected from the Bar-On EQ-i emotional intelligence assessment tool. The quantitative analysis was supported by findings from qualitative open ended interviews which resulted in the identification of one demographic factor and nine underlying psychological thematic categories. The thematic categories sorted into the emotional intelligence components identified above. Key findings indicate that the underlying psychological thematic categories may distort self-awareness, influence self-esteem, and impact self-actualization realization when problem solving a midlife career change. The demographic factor which influenced a voluntary midlife career change among women was that of a secondary household income. The underlying psychological categories which influenced the process solving process when making the midlife career change were comprised of the need to doing fulfilling/meaning work, wanting to make a difference, the need to follow one's passion, choosing to move beyond unconscious scripts influenced by past experiences, moving beyond fears (such as the fear of failure, not having enough, and not being good enough) belief in self, and self-talk. Becoming more educated on the identified underlying psychological categories which influence women's midlife career change behavior in conjunction with a self-awareness intervention to become more conscious of these psychological factors is recommended. Research recommendations and findings would be useful to organizations wanting to retain their midlife career women, career counselors and industrial organizational psychologists working with midlife women career changers, and the midlife career woman challenged with a voluntary midlife career change.