Emotional manipulation and selective competencies: the predictive role of emotional intelligence and Machiavellianism subdimensions among higher education administrators

This study investigates how emotional intelligence and Machiavellianism predict emotional manipulation among 182 academic administrators (such as deans, vice deans, head of departments) at Turkish public universities. The research specifically examines which subdimensions of these traits have the greatest impact on emotional manipulation skills of administrators. Analysis revealed a positive, moderate, and significant relationship between Machiavellianism and emotional manipulation. Additionally, age was negatively correlated with both Machiavellianism and emotional manipulation levels. Regression analysis results indicated that the subdimension of emotional intelligence “Use of Emotions” and the Machiavellian subdimensions “Moral Disengagement”, “Desire for Status”, and “Desire for Control” were significant positive predictors of emotional manipulation. Conversely, the subdimensions of emotional intelligence “Self-Emotion Appraisal”, “Others’ Emotion Appraisal” and “Regulation of Emotions” and the Machiavellian subdimension “Distrust of Others” had no significant effect. No statistically significant differences were found in any of the measured traits based on gender or managerial title. These findings suggest that higher education institutions should integrate psychological assessments, particularly focusing on Machiavellian traits, into administrator selection. Leadership programs should address the ethical use of emotions and promote service-oriented motivations over status-seeking. Furthermore, structured mentoring that pairs younger administrators with experienced colleagues could leverage the age-related decline in manipulative tendencies to foster ethical leadership.