2 . It’s not just adults who have a thing or two to discuss with other people, babies too have their own social lives and enjoy group interaction, according to a world-first study.

The breakthrough study conducted by psychologist Professor Ben Bradley, at Charles Sturt University, could completely transform the way child-care centres are set up. In their study, the researchers examined groups of nine-month-old babies in New South Wales and Britain.

And they came across astounding(令人吃惊的) results. It was found that infants had “social brains” and focused not just on their mothers but on social life in groups as well.

“They communicate with more than one baby at once, and show jealousy and generousness,” said Professor Bradley.

He added, “They develop their own meanings through group interaction, they notice if a group member is behaving differently and they take on roles, such as leaders and followers.”

“A baby who has a depressed mother tends to be withdrawn ( 内 向 的 ), but put that same baby in a group of its peers (同龄人) and they behave and interact like any other baby.”

It was the first all-baby group study ever to be conducted. “Most studies of babies concentrate on the infant-mother relationship, assuming that is the single foundation for mental health, but babies are constantly involved with groups of people other than their mothers, fathers, siblings, grandparents and those taking care. Therefore, the mother-baby approach needs to be combined with a group approach,” said Bradley.

Phoebe Christison, a child-care worker at Camperdown Sunshine Bubs in Sydney’s inner west, said she often noticed what appeared to be emotional attachments developed between toddlers.

She said, “Joel （     1     ） months ) and Isabella （     2     ） months ) always like to hold hands when they sit in their high chairs and eat. And babies definitely show jealousy. They push and touch each other, and copy what the other is doing.”

3 . Some of the greatest moments in human history were fueled by emotional intelligence. When Martin Luther King. Jr. presented his dream, he chose language that would stir the hearts of his audience. Delivering this electrifying(震撼性的) message required emotional intelligence—the ability to recognize, understand, and manage emotions.

Emotional intelligence has been highly recommended by leaders, policymakers, and educators as the solution to a wide range of social problems. If we can teach our children to manage emotions, the argument goes, we'll have less bullying and more cooperation. If we can cultivate emotional intelligence among leaders and doctors, we'll have more caring workplaces and more compassionate healthcare.

Emotional intelligence is important, but the uncontrolled enthusiasm has obscured (掩盖)a dark side. New evidence shows that when people sharpen their emotional skills, they become better at manipulating (把持) others. When you're good at controlling your own emotions, you can hide your true feelings. When you know what others are feeling, you can motivate them to act against their own best interests.

Social scientists have begun to document this dark side of emotional intelligence. In a research led by University of professor Jochen Menges, when a leader gave an inspiring speech filled with emotion. the audience was less likely to scrutinize (细察) the message and remembered of the content. Ironically(讽刺的是) audience members were so moved by the speech that they claimed to recall more of it.

The authors call this the awestruck effect, but it might just as easily be described as the dumbstruck effect. One observer reflected that Hitler's persuasive impact came from his ability to strategically express emotions—he would "ear open his heart—and these emotions affected his followers to the point that they would"stop thinking critically and just emote.”

Leaders who master emotions can rob us of our capacities to reason. If their values are out of step with our own. the results can be destructive. New evidence suggests that when people have self-serving motives (动机), emotional intelligence becomes a weapon for manipulating others. In a study led by the University of Toronto psychologist Stephane Cote, university employees filled out a survey about their Machiavellian(不择手段的) tendencies, and took a test measuring their knowledge about effective strategies for managing emotions. Then, Cote's team assessed how often the employees deliberately undermined (逐渐削弱) their colleagues. The employees involved in the most harmful behaviors were Machiavellians with high emotional intelligence. They used their emotional skills to lower the dignity of their peers for personal gain.

Shining a light on this dark side of emotional intelligence is one mission of a research team led University College London professor Martin Kilduff. According to these experts, emotional intelligence helps people disguise (伪装) one set of emotions while expressing another for personal Professor Kiiduit's team writes,""The strategic disguise of one's own emotions and the manipulation of others' emotions for strategic ends are behaviors evident not only on Shakespeare's stage but also in the offices and corridors where power and influence are traded.”

Of course, people aren't always using emotional intelligence for nefarious ends. More often than not, emotional skills are simply instrumental tools for goal accomplishment. A research team discovered that founder Anita Roddick used emotional intelligence to inspire her employees fundraise for charity. As Roddick explained, "Whenever particular project we always tried to break their hearts we wanted to persuade our staff to support a particular project we always tried to break their hearts.”

There is growing recognition that emotional intelligence--like any skill--can be used for good or evil. So if we're going to teach emotional intelligence in schools and develop it at work, we need to   consider the values that go along with it and where it's actually useful.