The ability to measure a particular quality enables us to compare individuals on one parameter and find the highest and lowest points for the same accordingly. This fact has been the core tenet of various methodologies in social sciences and behavioral disciplines. The term “Intelligence Quotient (IQ)” was first coined by the German psychologist, William Stern in describing the value that consists of dividing the mental age by chronological age and this ratio is then multiplied by 100. 

Intelligence Quotient has been one of the most earlier pioneer works by behavioral scientists and theorists in expressing the measure of an individual’s quality and comparing others to them. This understanding transformed our entire understanding of intelligence for the next decades. Scoring high on an IQ test came to be known as a sign of genius and such individuals were praised for their academic achievements and successes. 

However, as more studies followed such individuals, it became clear that IQ was not sufficient for a happy life. The question on happiness is still debated and pondered over for hours by philosophers, scientists, theorists, etc. Behavioral scientists looked for other key elements that contribute to an individual’s happiness and what factors were responsible for them.

In doing so, they discovered Emotional Intelligence, or the “EI” which came to be known as the main pillar of healthy relationships of an individual with others. In pure definition, EI refers to the understanding of our own emotions as well as those of others and learning to acknowledge them in a positive way. IQ coupled with EQ became a standard for achieving high life satisfaction and happiness in one’s life. 

The emphasis on the “community” and the “society” aspect of intelligence came from sociology, anthropology and social psychology. It was felt that man has been a social animal from the very beginning of the evolutionary process and thus, the term social intelligence came into existence. Social quotient (measure of social intelligence) came to be closely associated with street smartness, common sense, understanding of the social orders, etc. This domain of intelligence is somewhat similar to the construct of interpersonal intelligence, as included in the “multiple intelligences’ theory” by the psychologist Howard Gardner. 

The above mentioned constructs became highly popular in understanding individual constructs when put in the context of their personal lives, the quality of their relationships with others, the role they played in their life satisfaction and well being, etc. One crucial aspect which was missing was the understanding of that particular element which drove high performance among individuals who achieved great successes in their individual careers.

Hence, a major focus of organizational psychology became revolving around the construct of “leadership”. It was widely believed and in fact proved that leadership is one of the most important qualities possessed by top performing team leaders, managers and high level corporate employees. “Leadership Quotient” became the reliable source to measure such a quality and hence it helped the behavioral scientists in understanding the sub-aspects of leadership from a quantitative perspective. Along with other factors, LQ was shown to be a major component of an individual’s professional success and eventually, that of the company’s. 

These were some of the most widely accepted and practiced meters of various types of intelligences that persist in different fields of an individual life. Our focus should be in achieving an optimum balance between them in reaching our goals and making each event of our lives meaningful and not just successful.