Analysis

Interviews with the employees of Attijari Bank in Ghomrassen were collected, translated,

manually transcribed from the Arabic version to the English one, and coded through deductive

thematic analysis. This method goes beyond counting phrases or words and moves on to

identifying and describing patterns and themes across the data sets (Guest, MacQueen, &

Namey,2012). Clarke and Braun (2006) stated that: “a theme captures important aspects about the

data to the research question and represents some level of patterned response or meaning within

the data set” (p.82).

In the current study, the objective of the interviews was to detect employees’ emotional

intelligence experiences in customer service at Attijari bank Ghomrassen, thus it was suitable to

analyze the qualitative data thematically for two main reasons. First, Thematic analysis,

according to Braun and Clarke (2006) and King (2004), is a powerful technique for assessing the

viewpoints or perspectives of various research participants, showing parallels and differences,

and producing unexpected findings. (As cited in Nowell, Norris, White, and Moules, 2017, p.2).

second, Braun and Clarke (2012) stated that Thematic analysis is an appropriate and powerful

method to use when seeking to understand a set of experiences, thoughts, or behaviors across a

data set (as cited Kiger and Varpio, 2020, p. 2).

In thematic analysis, themes or patterns within data can be identified using one of two

primary approaches: inductive or deductive. The inductive or bottom-up thematic analysis starts

from scratch and creates codes based on the qualitative data. In other words, all codes arise

directly from the data itself. This is in direct contrast to the deductive thematic analysis or top-

down approach. Deductive coding means we start with pre-existing code and themes that

emerged from the research aims, research questions, and individual questions asked in the

interviews (Braun & Clarke,2012). This study analyzed, described, and interpreted the interviews
 based on the EI theory and Goleman’s (1998) competency framework. As mentioned in the

literature unlike the mental ability model which focused on emotions themselves and their

interactions with thought (Mayer & Salovey,1997), the mixed model trait mental abilities and a

variety of EI competencies contribute to explicit life domains like workplace and education

(Cherniss & Goleman, 2001). As I am concerned in my research on customer service, the mixed

model of Goleman was a suitable predetermine theory to analyze my qualitative data. This model

is made up of determining emotional intelligence skills that are tested during the interviews with

workers in Attijari bank Ghomrassen. Based on the literature, I selected two EI categories to

examine. The first category was service providers’ personal competencies which contain two

themes: self-awareness, and self-regulation of emotions. The second EI category I selected to

explore was service providers’ social competencies, including social awareness, and relationship

management. Since the objective of the interviews was to detect service providers’ emotional

intelligence experience and practices in customer service at Attijari bank Ghomrassen, I used the

following interview questions to explore the main objective of the interviews:

1. Tell me about a time when your mood had an impact on your work.

2. Describe a time when you had to deliver some bad news to your customers.

3. Tell me about a time a customer criticized your work how did you respond to it?

4. Have you ever dealt with an unreasonable customer; how did you handle it?

Deductive thematic analysis was chosen in this study because it facilitates the

interpretation of identifiable themes and behavioral patterns in the data. Furthermore, in contrast

to inductive approaches, deductive thematic analysis saves time and requires researchers to

process data in a structured way and produce concise final reports. The guidelines from Braun

and Clarke (2006) were followed to perform the deductive thematic analysis. Braun and Clarke

(2006) describe six phases or steps of thematic analysis to create meaningful themes and patterns.
 Step 1: Become familiar with the data Step 4: Review themes

Transcribing data, reading and re-reading the Checking if the themes work with the coded

data, and noting down initial ideas. extracts (Level 1) and the entire data set (Level 2),

generating a thematic ‘map’ of the analysis.

Step 2: Generate initial codes Step 5: Define themes

Coding interesting features of the data in a Ongoing analysis to refine the specifics of each

systematic fashion across the entire data set, theme, and the overall story the analysis tells,

collating data relevant to each code generating clear definitions and names for each

theme.

Step 3: Search for themes Step 6: Write-up

Collating codes into potential themes, gathering The final opportunity for analysis. Selection of

all data relevant to each potential theme. vivid, compelling extract examples, the final

analysis of selected extracts, relating of the

analysis to the research question and literature,

and producing a scholarly report of the analysis.

Table 1: Braun & Clarke’s six-phase thematic analysis framework (Clarke & Braun, 2018).

Step one:

This research study has a basis for the EI theory and Goleman’s (1998) competency

framework. Based on the literature, I selected two EI components to explore. The interviewees’

responses were read multiple times, and initial notes were identified after getting familiar. These

notes are related concepts and phrases that the researchers find interesting or meaningful.

Interviewee1 Interviewee2 Interviewee3 Interviewee 4

(Moustapha (Alaeddine

Boubakri) (Najjemeddine Hamzaoui) (Okba Latrech)

Achach )

-I perform better at - Although balancing - I was anxious…which -I don't let my mood

work when I am happy life and work pressure unfortunately affected affect my performance

and in a good mood. is difficult, it does not my work performance at work.

- When I am in a bad prevent us from and caused some work - I try to forget all

mood, I simply control resisting any challenge mistake emotions that could

myself to avoid making we face. - some problems were affect my performance.

any mistakes with - we must deliver some observed in some - talking about interest
customers and maintain bad news to our clients workplace transactions rate increases causes

a positive attitude. without harming our - differences in working discomfort for

-Our goal is not to person or customers methods cause criticism customers.

present bad news as - I believe criticism can from the customers - I calmly and politely
bad, but as the best in be useful - it is necessary to respond when someone
the worst situation. - I am honest when I respect these opinions criticized me
- we always aim to make mistakes ( criticism) -, I must carefully listen
present our work as the - we are trained enough - adjust our working to my customers’
best and prevent to accept those who are methods according to complaints and accept
customer criticism. not in the mood with each customer. them
- We expect some calmness. - We often encounter -, it is very important to
customers to be mentally unbalanced maintain calm, deal
unreasonable… we customers with customers smartly
have the ability and - Calm, sobriety, - take into
knowledge to deal with smiling, and good
consideration their
 all situations. listening to the psychological condition

customers limit the - respond to their

level of convulsion and (customers’ ) requests

contribute to calming and inquiries.

the atmosphere and

providing the required

services

Table 3: Familiarization notes from the four interviews.

Step two:

Coding was used to organize the interview extracts into small chunks of meaning, codes

were defined as blocks of data (usually phrases, sentences, or paragraphs) associated with a

particular context or setting. (DeCuir-Gunby, Marshall, & McCulloch, 2011). Using deductive or

theoretical thematic analysis, coding was developed from prior theories and concepts ( see

table11) .

Step three:

The data were re-read, and the codes were defined into more specific themes based on, the

concepts or theories adopted from the research questions and literature views which decide upon

the needed themes. For example, the researcher identified two themes associated with the notion

of personal competence at work, which has been well documented in the literature of emotional

intelligence models, such as self-awareness or the ability to perceive and recognize emotions in

the Goleman EI model (Kanesan, & Fauzan,2019).

The table above shows codes and themes derived from the interview extracts
 Extracts Codes Themes

Interviewee 1: I perform better at work when I am happy and Positive emotions

in a good mood. work performance SELF –

positive emotions
When I am in a bad mood, I simply control myself to avoid AWARENESS
self-control toward
making any mistakes with customers and maintain a positive SELF –
negative emotions
attitude. REGULATION

Our goal is not to present bad news as bad ( to customers) but SOCIAL
as the best in the worst situation. AWARENESS
we always aim to present our work as the best and prevent
acting with
RELATIONSHIP
customer criticism.
customer MANAGEMENT
We expect some customers to be unreasonable… we have the
adopting to
ability and knowledge to deal with all situations. problems

service quality

customer

evaluation

customer mood

work

professionalism

Interviewee 2

balancing life and work pressure is difficult Negative emotion

Self-resistance
it does not prevent us from resisting any challenge we face.
Self-assessment
we must deliver some bad news to our clients without harming
Communication
our person or customers
with customer
 caring

I believe criticism can be useful respect

constructive
- I am honest when I make mistakes
feedback
- we are trained enough to accept those who are not in the
self-awareness
mood with calmness.
show empathy

the control of
negative emotions

Interviewee 3

- some problems were observed in some workplace Negative emotions

Work performance
transactions
Self-assessment
- I was anxious…which unfortunately affected my work
Customer criticism
performance and caused some work mistake
Confident in talking
due to family problems which unfortunately affected my work
about mistakes
performance

differences in working methods cause criticism from the

Open minded
customers Adaptability and

it is necessary to respect these opinions (criticism) flexibility to the

- adjust our working methods according to each customer. customer

- We often encounter mentally unbalanced customers Conflict

management
- Calm, sobriety, smiling, and good listening to the customers
Active listening
limit the level of convulsion and contribute to calming the
Customer needs
atmosphere and providing the required services

Interviewee 4

talking about interest rate increases causes discomfort for Customer negative

customers. emotion

I calmly and politely respond when someone criticized me

 I must carefully listen to my customers’ complaints and accept Understanding

them others

Conflict

management
it is very important to maintain calm, deal with customers

smartly
Active listening
- take into consideration their psychological condition
Open mined

- respond to their (customers’ ) requests and inquiries

Conflict

management

Acting with

customer

Caring

Empathy

Customer emotion

Customer needs

Step four:

The themes were categorized based on their relationships to specific competency and the

frequency of occurrence within the data set, which determines the importance of each theme

(Namey, Guest, Thairu, & Johnson,2008). Two categories were identified each consisting of two

themes. These categories were as follows: personal competence, and social competence. To
support the presence of each theme within the main category, statements were extracted from the

raw data.

Social awareness
Self-awareness Self-regulation

EI Personal
EI Social
competence
competence

Relationship
management

Figure 1: Thematic map analysis for qualitative data analysis

Category Theme

Link to sub-theme Relationship between categories.

Step six:

Following the guidelines of Braun and Clarke (2006), a final analysis of the selected

extracts was associated with the research question and the corresponding literature.

Findings and discussion

The researcher familiarized herself with the material and developed a list of themes. The

data were then coded, and these themes were clustered into two main categories (figure 1). This

section presented the analysis with extracts from the four interviews to support each theme, and
interconnections between categories were described. The themes analysis was followed by a

discussion of the main findings.

Emotional intelligence personal competence

EI personal competence enables one to perceive and use emotions to facilitate thought,

resulting in the ability to manage emotions to achieve outstanding workplace performance.EI

personal competence involves Self-Awareness, Self-Regulation, and Self-Motivation. (Cherniss, &

Goleman, 2001).

Theme1: self-awareness

The first important EI skill is the ability of service providers to perceive one's emotions

and recognize their impact, there was a shared view among the service providers that positive and

negative emotions were directly linked to work performance.

''I perform better at work when I am happy and in a good mood''. (interviewee1)

''I was anxious…which unfortunately affected my work performance and caused some

work mistakes''(interviewee 3).

The above extracts emphasize workers’ awareness of emotions while working. Emotions either

negative ''pressure '', ''anxious'', “bad mood'' or positive '' happy'', ''good mood” can impact their

work performance. The participant' responses revealed that their awareness of emotions was

linked to work performance, this finding appears in previous studies on the relationship between

emotional self-awareness and job performance (e.g., Parry,1998, Cherniss and Goleman, 2001,

Kernbach and Schutte, 2005). Parry (1998) argued that emotional personal skills strongly affect

one’s job performance. In their famous book the emotionally intelligent workplace, Cherniss, and

Goleman (2001) stated that Emotional Self-Awareness proved crucial in financial planners’ job

performance and that financial planners’ self-awareness help them deal with their emotional

reaction better. Kernbach and Schutte, 2005 linked service delivery and job performance to
emotional intelligence skills. The interviewees asserted that positive emotions lead to better

performance and in contrast, negative ones lead to low performance, this result is matched with

Tronvoll, (2011) findings which reported that service providers’ negative emotions such as

worry, frustration, and anger had a greater impact on their interactions at work than those

associated with positive emotions like excitement, joy, and pleasure.

Most of the participants have a sense of self-assessment while talking about problems in

the workplace.

“Despite achieving most of the desired goals during the entire year, some problems were

observed in some workplace transactions” (interviewee 3).

''I remember a time when I was anxious due to family problems which,

unfortunately ...caused some work mistakes'‘(interviewee 3).

“I believe criticism can be useful, not harmful if I build on it to improve”

''I am honest when I make mistakes'' (interviewee 2).

Participants’ self-awareness is a tool for motivating self-assessment by showing their

abilities and limitations and their willingness to improve and learn from feedback. The result is

supported by Cherniss and Goleman (2001) who stated that Self-Awareness is key to realizing

one’s strengths and weaknesses. Although most service providers seem to be emotionally self-

awareness, it is not necessary that workers are highly emotionally intelligent. Emotional

self-awareness forms one component of emotional intelligence (Mayer and Salovey,1997). Thus,

individuals can have high or low emotional intelligence and still have accurate emotional

awareness in comparison to how others see them (Jordan & Ashkanasy, 2006).

Theme 2: self-management
 It involves service providers controlling one's emotions and impulses to adapt to changing

circumstances, according to all the participants’ narratives self-regulation is used in their service

interactions.

“When I am in a bad mood, I simply control myself to avoid making any mistakes,

especially with customers, and maintain a positive attitude.” (interviewee1)

“Although balancing life and work pressure is difficult; it does not prevent me from

resisting any challenge I face.” (Interviewee 2)

In the two-above extracts, the interviewees show a strong sense of control over their bad

emotions and any challenge in their lives. The participants directly linked the ability to control

bad emotions with “resisting” and maintaining a “positive attitude”. According to the participant,

the control of negative emotions goes in parallel with reinforcing positive emotion “attitude”, this

implies that positive emotions are used to regulate emotional responses to negative emotions.

Several studies have shown identical results (Tugade, & Fredrickson,2007; Waugh, 2020; Cha &

Song,2021). According to the broaden and build (Fredrickson, 2001) theory, positive emotions

are functionally important when dealing with negative emotional circumstances. In this theory,

she stated that positive and negative emotions have complementary and distinct functions. Unlike

negative emotions, which focus and narrow thoughts and actions, positive emotions should

broaden one's thoughts and actions, and thus build personal development. According to this, our

findings indicate that negative emotions experienced by service providers, like “pressure” and

“anxiety” are associated with tendencies to act and think in a specific way that decreases their

ability to cope and resistance, through reinforcing positive emotions frontline workers build

important psychological and social resources.

Social competence:
 Another major category emerging from the data analysis was social competence refers to

the service provider’s ability to read and understand customers’ emotions and behaviors to

improve the quality of the relationship; it includes social awareness and relationship management

skills (Cherniss and Goleman,2001).

Theme 1: social awareness

It encompasses service providers’ awareness of customer emotions, needs, and concerns.

Almost all participants recognized their customers’ emotions.

“Talking about interest rate increases causes discomfort for customers” “takes into

consideration their psychological conditions” (interviewee 4)

“We expect some customers to be unreasonable at some point.” (Interviewee 1)

“We are trained to accept those who are not in the mood” (interviewee2)

“We often encounter mentally unbalanced customers” (interviewee 3)

There were shared views among the participants that negative emotions like being “not in

the mood” and “discomfort” are highly linked to difficult customers “unreasonable” and

“mentally unbalanced customers”. According to their responses, participants show acceptance

and tolerance to these customers.

The above pieces of evidence emphasize that service providers are highly empathetic

with their customers’ negative emotions. Workers’ awareness of customers’ moods comes from

their self-awareness about their emotions. If the participants can understand and recognize their

emotions, they can automatically understand and empathize with customers’ emotions.

According to many previous studies, empathy is strongly linked to self-awareness, and workers

cannot fully grasp the emotions of customers unless they can identify their own emotions.’

(Goleman,2001; Rogers, 2007; Waite & McKinney, 2016). Added to that empathy is an
important mechanism in governing customer-employee interactions (Wieseke, Geigenmüller, &

Kraus, 2012).

Social awareness according to Goleman’s theory of emotional intelligence is not only

meant to be empathetic with customers but also to understand their unstated needs. Half

employees equated empathy with customers’ needs. Customer orientation was highlighted in all

interviews with the bank workers. it included caring about customers’ needs “to respond to their

requests and inquiries.”,” providing the required services”, and respecting customers’ feedback

“listening to my customers’ complaints”. This evidence proved that employees have strong

identification of customers’ emotions and needs. Through customer identifications, front-line

employees strongly influence customer attitudes and behaviors in service interactions. This result

is consistent with Chen, Hsiao, and W’s (2018) work that deals with social awareness factors

influencing customers’ purchasing decisions and behavioral intentions.

Theme 2: Relationship management:

The ability to handle relationships was seen by the study participants as an effective way

to improve customer encounters or customer service.

There was much evidence of the continuous attempts to manage the emotions of

customers to maintain a positive emotional state and display the appropriate feeling while

interacting with difficult customers. Employees include some steps to manage difficult customers

like “. Calm, sobriety, smiling, and good listening to the customers limit the level of convulsion”

participant linked reinforcing positive behaviors to customers, highlighting their role in

maintaining a positive relationship with the customers (Kaňovská, 2010), thus focusing on

controlling emotions and keeping positive attitudes are very important elements for the success of

this relationship in customer service. Itani and Inyang (2015) mentioned that instead achieve
short-term outcomes, it is essential to focus on continuing relationships by emphasizing

employees’ empathic behavior.

Customer feedback was seen as an important concept in the participants’ responses.

“Sometimes differences in working methods cause criticism from the customers”

(interviewee3)

“Even if his or her feedback is not constructive, I must carefully listen to my customers’

complaints and accept them.” (interviewee4)

“I believe criticism can be useful, not harmful”(interviwee2)

Most of the employees emphasize the importance of listening and accepting customers’

complaints and feedback, thus they linked it to the ability to improve and adaptability

“Sometimes differences in working methods cause criticism from the customers, thus it is

necessary to respect these opinions and adjust our working methods according to each customer”.

These shreds of evidence highlight employees’ problem-solving skills; the employees not only

detect customers’ problems, complaints, and bad emotions but also try to solve them through

many tactics like being flexible and open-minded to customers’ needs and being calm and polite

while dealing with them. Umasuthan, Park, and Ryu, (2017) emphasize that employees must

adjust his/her attitudes and behavior to follow the needs, wants, and desires of the customers.

Therefore, it is easy to conclude that according to the interviewees’ responses relationship

management is obvious through maintaining healthy communication based on listening to

customer feedback, registering emotional cues in attuning to their message, and second managing

conflict with customers through Handling difficult people and tense situations with diplomacy

and tact.

Taken together, interviews with service providers in Attijari bank Ghomrassen indicate

that they practice emotional intelligence competencies to improve customer service relations and
service interaction. However, I was unable to confirm that making statements consistent with

emotional intelligence competencies meant that employees practiced or used these competencies

when serving customers. To make such a claim, the interviews and workplace observations must

be triangulated.