Exploring emotional intelligence and conflict management through a systematic literature review and bibliometric analysis

Purpose Even though many studies have highlighted the importance of emotional intelligence and conflict management in an organization, only a few scholars have systematically investigated the integrated knowledge landscape of this area. Therefore, this paper aims to comprehensively review emotional intelligence (EI), emotional intelligence measures, and conflict management through a systematic literature review. Design/methodology/approach The selected 122 articles published between 1995 and 2023 are analysed in two phases. In the first phase, a bibliometric analysis is conducted using CiteSpace and VOSviewer, and in the second phase, a detailed analysis based on the results is done. VOSviewer was used to perform bibliometric coupling of journals and nations, while CiteSpace was used for keyword and author analysis to identify potential research areas. Findings The keyword co-occurrence analysis of 122 articles using CiteSpace resulted in eight research clusters representing research areas related to individual outcomes, organizational outcomes, measurement scales of EI and conflict management, moderators and mediators, conflict management styles, type of conflicts and research methods. It is observed that the EI and conflict management research mainly focused on specific groups or industries, and a generalized framework is limited in the literature. Research limitations/implications There are a few minor limitations to this study. Due to the fact that this study solely considered English-language articles, we may have left out some of the literature. This analysis takes only journal articles into account, and the search is limited to the literature in Scopus databases. It would be ideal to have more different publications, like books, reports, conference papers, etc., taken into account in the future in order to obtain a more complete picture of knowledge development. Despite these limitations, this paper aims to shed light on the research on emotional intelligence, conflict management, and emotional intelligence measurement scales. Practical implications This study, based on existing research in emotional intelligence and conflict management, two rapidly expanding fields, has major implications for researchers, HR professionals, managers, policymakers, academicians, and society. It also holds significant economic and commercial implications for organizations. The research highlights the importance of EI training, particularly for managers, to improve their conflict management skills. Moreover, the study emphasises the importance of HR professionals in developing better empathetic and employee-focused strategies for effective conflict management. The bibliometric analysis in this research offers insights into prevailing research methodologies, publication trends, and key contributors in the field. The insights and research gaps identified in this study pave the way for exciting future research that can contribute to a more empathetic, emotionally aware society, reducing the negative impacts of unmanaged conflicts in various social settings. Originality/value This review is the first attempt to systematically examine emotional intelligence and conflict management knowledge structure by adhering to PRISMA guidelines and visually analysing the literature using VOS viewer and Cite Space software. The results provide the major research areas and highlight the gaps and potential future research directions.