Emotional Intelligence
by Daniel Goleman
A science journalist explains why emotional skills such as empathy and self-control can matter as much as IQ. A landmark in popular psychology. Read the full description
Best for: Managers, parents, and teachers
Emotional Intelligence is #88 on BookWard's Top 100 books for September 2026, with a BookWard Score of 51 out of 100.
Emotional Intelligence: reading interest over the past 12 months
Sources: Open Library’s public reading-log and ratings data (dump of 2026-08-31), Wikipedia page views and Wikidata. Monthly counts are exact; they show relative interest among readers of these public sources, not total readership.
Ranked against the other books on this list, Emotional Intelligence’s reading interest has run from #62 to #95 over these 12 months. Interest rank blends shelf adds, Wikipedia page views and rating activity, each compared with the other 99 books that month.
Shelf adds by month
Emotional Intelligence was added to Open Library readers’ shelves 534 times in the past 12 months, peaking in February 2026 with 75 (69% above its monthly average of 44). Over the latest three months (Jun 2026 to Aug 2026) shelf adds were down 1% on the three months before. 87% of the adds were “want to read”, 9% “currently reading” and 4% “already read”.
Want to read Currently reading Already read
Wikipedia page views
Its Wikipedia article was viewed 44,776 times in the past 12 months, peaking in October 2025 with 4,589 views. The latest three months were down 37% on the three before.
Source: Wikimedia monthly page views for the article Emotional Intelligence.
What the data says about Emotional Intelligence
- Moderate swings. Monthly shelf adds averaged 44 with some ups and downs.
- Busiest and quietest months. February 2026 was its busiest month (75 adds), about 2.7 times its quietest, June 2026 (28).
- Against its genre. It had 39% fewer shelf adds than the average Psychology book on this list.
- Share of the list. It accounts for 0.5% of all shelf adds recorded for the Top 100 over these 12 months, #69 of 100.
- Its age. First published in 1995 (31 years ago), it is older than 64% of the books on the list.
Each finding is computed from the public data above and shown only when the numbers support it.
Emotional Intelligence on the Top 100: rank history
First charted in September 2026. The chart gains a point with every monthly update, so its peak, climbs and falls will show here as they happen.
| Month | Rank | Score |
|---|---|---|
| September 2026 | #88 | 51 |
Is Emotional Intelligence rising or falling?
Cooling It ranks lower this week than over the past year, so interest is softening from its recent level.
On Open Library, Emotional Intelligence ranks #125 this week, #100 this month, and #95 over the past year. A longer bar means a higher position. Comparing the three windows shows whether readers are arriving faster than the book's long-term pace. Readings as of 2026-09-30.
Why Emotional Intelligence made the Top 100
Emotional Intelligence made the list mainly on momentum (+20.5 points) and being read right now (+15.7 points). Its smallest contribution is rising (+0). The BookWard Score blends five public signals, each scored from 0 to 100 and weighted as shown.
The reading-now, rating and rank signals come from Open Library’s public data, not from BookWard’s own readers. The score measures reading interest, not quality or sales. How the score works.
Open Library reader stats for Emotional Intelligence
Source: Open Library public reading logs, as of 2026-09-30. BookWard’s own monthly snapshots are added to the picture, and anonymous BookWard reader data will be layered in as the community grows.
More readers have Emotional Intelligence open right now than 34% of the other books on this list. These counts come from one public source, so they show relative interest rather than total readership.
Where it sits among Psychology books
It is #5 of the 6 Psychology books on this month’s list.
About Emotional Intelligence
A science journalist explains why emotional skills such as empathy and self-control can matter as much as IQ. A landmark in popular psychology.
Why it’s here: It gave a name to a whole field, and it still shapes how we talk about people skills.
Best for: Managers, parents, and teachers
At a glance
- First published
- 1995-01-01
- Genre
- Psychology
- Also described as
- non-fiction
- Length
- about 376 pages (the median across its editions)
- Original language
- English
- Languages
- editions in 5 languages listed on Open Library
- Editions
- 40 on Open Library
From Open Library and Wikidata public records. Missing rows mean the records do not list that fact.
Themes
- Self-awareness
- Empathy
- Emotional skills
What reading it is like
Research-driven and broad.
At about 376 pages it is a longer read: roughly 8 hours at an average reading pace (about 250 words a minute, 300 words a page). Audiobook and edition lengths vary.
Good to know
Helped popularize the term emotional intelligence. Some of its claims have been questioned.
The premise
Daniel Goleman argues that emotional skills such as self-awareness, empathy, and self-control matter as much as IQ, and shows how to build them.
What you’ll get
- A landmark in popular psychology
- Research and real stories
- Ideas for work and parenting
You might skip it if you want a short, modern take.
Pairs well with: Influence
Keep exploring the chart
Also on the chart at #87 and #89
Questions about Emotional Intelligence
What rank is Emotional Intelligence on the Top 100 books?
Emotional Intelligence is #88 on BookWard's Top 100 books for September 2026, with a BookWard Score of 51 out of 100.
Is Emotional Intelligence rising or falling?
Cooling. It ranks lower this week than over the past year, so interest is softening from its recent level. On Open Library, Emotional Intelligence ranks #125 this week, #100 this month, and #95 over the past year.
Why is Emotional Intelligence on the Top 100?
Emotional Intelligence made the list mainly on momentum (+20.5 points) and being read right now (+15.7 points). Its smallest contribution is rising (+0).
How many people are reading Emotional Intelligence right now?
Open Library's reading logs show 206 readers currently reading Emotional Intelligence, 2,390 who want to read it and 107 who have logged it as read (as of 2026-09-30). These are counts from one public source, not all readers.
How much interest has Emotional Intelligence had over the past year?
534 Open Library shelf adds in the past 12 months (peak February 2026, 75); latest three months down 1% on the prior three; 44,776 Wikipedia views in the past 12 months (down 37% over the latest three months). Figures come from Open Library and Wikipedia public data.
Who is Emotional Intelligence best for?
Managers, parents, and teachers.
Ask a question about Emotional Intelligence
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How we know
This page is built from public data: Open Library’s dated reading-log and ratings dumps, Wikipedia page views, Wikidata, and BookWard’s own monthly Top 100 snapshots. The interest rank blends shelf adds (45%), Wikipedia page views (30%), rating activity (10%) and, for months where a snapshot exists, BookWard’s own score (15%), each as a percentile among the Top 100 books. Every month shown is real data; nothing is estimated. Rankings reflect reading interest, not quality or sales, and can be affected by data gaps. Last updated September 2026. Read the full methodology.
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