Résumé
Leaders who are able to use emotions to guide decision making are able to motivate subordinates by engaging in activities facilitated by emotions and are able to encourage open minded idea generation, decision making and planning because they can consider multiple points of views. Aim: This study was conducted to explore the relationship between leadership styles and emotional intelligence of head nurses at Mansoura University Hospitals. A descriptive exploratory design was used for head nurses working in Oncology Hospital, Gastroenterology Hospital and Emergency Hospital [54 head nurses on the job]. Three tools were used for data collection: characteristics data sheet of the head nurses, Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire [MLQ] and Leahy Emotional Schema Scale [LESS]. It revealed that emotional intelligence differed among the studied nurses in the three hospitals. A statistically significant relation was found between the studied head nurses' age and [sometimes] and "almost" use of transformational leadership style. There were no statistically significant relations between leadership styles and emotional intelligence of head nurses and their years of experience, and the emotional intelligence was not significantly correlated with leadership styles among the studied head nurses. It is recommended to provide the head nurses with needed support programs for adding emotional intelligence training to be happier, more committed to their organization, achieve greater success and perform better in the workplace in order to enhance their leadership style