Emotional intelligence is definantly an interesting area. I'd say its one of my stronger points personally. It all has to do with essentially being able to empathise both with others and oneself! Essentially its defined as ones ability to manage their own emotions, as well as those of others. Maybe I should write research this more an write an article on it, it does sound very interesting.
An interesting question would be to see if those with more neuroplasticity are more emotionally smart. Neuroplasticity is basically the bodies ability to be flexible. As a musician I certainly feel that music is great for handling emotions, and I wrote an article recently on how it helps with the brains ability to create new pathways. It can be found here:
Total Wellbeing: The Power of Music - The Link Between Musical Ability and Intelligence:
I wonder if musicians are typically score better on emotional intelligence? Or indeed arts based students against science based students? It would make an interesting study I imagine.