The effects of emotional labor on frontline employee creativity

2014 ◽  
Vol 26 (7) ◽  
pp. 1046-1064 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zizhen Geng ◽  
Chao Liu ◽  
Xinmei Liu ◽  
Jie Feng
Keyword(s):  
Job Stress ◽  
Emotional Labor ◽  
Surface Acting ◽  
Employee Creativity ◽  
Deep Acting ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Frontline Employee ◽  
Challenge Stress ◽  
Hindrance Stress ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to empirically test and extend knowledge of the effects of emotional labor of frontline service employee. Design/methodology/approach – The authors examined the effects of emotional labor (surface acting and deep acting) on frontline employee creativity, as well as the mediating effects of different kinds of job stress (hindrance stress and challenge stress) on the relationship between emotional labor and creativity. The research hypotheses were tested using data collected from 416 service employee–supervisor dyads in 82 Chinese local restaurants. Findings – Results show that surface acting is negatively related to and deep acting is positively related to frontline employee creativity; surface acting is positively related to hindrance stress, while deep acting is positively related to challenge stress; and hindrance stress mediates the relationship between surface acting and creativity. Originality/value – This study extends the consequences of emotional labor to frontline employee creativity from a cognitive perspective. It also advances knowledge about the effects of emotional labor on stress by classifying different kinds of job stress caused by different cognitive appraisals of surfacing acting and deep acting, and revealing the role of hindrance stress as psychological mechanism through which surface acting affects creativity.

scholarly journals Emotional Labor Strategies And Service Performance: The Mediating Role Of Employee Creativity

2013 ◽  
Vol 29 (5) ◽  
pp. 1583 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chao Liu ◽  
Xinmei Liu ◽  
Zizhen Geng
Keyword(s):  
Emotional Labor ◽  
Service Industry ◽  
Service Performance ◽  
Role Performance ◽  
Surface Acting ◽  
Employee Creativity ◽  
Deep Acting ◽  
Frontline Employee ◽  
Mediating Role

This paper theoretically and empirically investigates the effects of different emotional labor strategies on frontline employee creativity in the context of service industry, and it also studies the mediating role of frontline employee creativity in the relationships between frontline employees emotional labor strategies and the two aspects of customer service performance. Based on the data of 424 employeesupervisor dyads in China, the empirical results indicate that surface acting decreases employee creativity and extra role performance, while deep acting increases employee creativity, role-prescribed performance and extra role performance; employee creativity mediates both the negative influence of surface acting on extra role performance and the positive influences of deep acting on role-prescribed and extra role performances. The results have some theoretical and practical implications on service creativity and emotion management in service industry.

Labors of love: service employees on customer participation

2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (6) ◽  
pp. 585-607
Author(s):  
Laee Choi ◽  
Charles A. Lawry
Keyword(s):  
Job Stress ◽  
Emotional Labor ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Customer Participation ◽  
Surface Acting ◽  
Deep Acting ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Service Employees ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
The Impact

PurposeVery few studies have considered how customer participation (CP) influences service employees' well-being. CP may lead employees to engage in emotional labor strategies (surface/deep acting), which can elevate their job stress. Whereas surface acting involves falsifying emotions, deep acting involves empathizing with others. Therefore, the current article examines how these emotional labor strategies arise from CP and create job stress.Design/methodology/approachStudy 1 is an online survey of service employees' wellbeing during CP (n = 509). Study 2 compares service employees' responses within hedonic and utilitarian service settings through a scenario-based experiment (n = 440). PROCESS was used to analyze the data in both studies.FindingsFirst, study 1 supports that perceived CP increases job stress. Secondly, surface acting mediates the link between CP and job stress, but deep acting does not. Thereafter, Study 2 shows that the link between CP and job stress decreases as employee-customer identification (ECI) increases only during surface acting. Additionally, the impact of surface acting on job stress during CP is greater for hedonic services than utilitarian services, but there is no significant difference for deep acting.Originality/valueThis article contributes an original perspective by comparing models of service employees' responses to CP and job stress in hedonic versus utilitarian settings. Moreover, the intervening effects of ECI and emotional labor strategies on job stress, as demonstrated through these employee-facing models, offer added value to the CRM and co-creation literature.

The way you make me abuse: impression management matters

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuan-Ling Chen ◽  
Ting Yi Chu
Keyword(s):  
Impression Management ◽  
Emotional Labor ◽  
Abusive Supervision ◽  
Surface Acting ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Deep Acting ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Cross Sectional Design ◽  
Management Functions ◽  
The Relationship

PurposeDrawing on the perspectives of emotional labor, self-concept and impression management, this study presents two major findings: (1) employees' excessive reliance on impression management can bother supervisors, and (2) the effectiveness of impression management depends on how the management affects targets' attribution of characteristics to actors.Design/methodology/approachThe study uses a cross-sectional design and a sample of 259 employees to investigate the antecedents of abusive supervision and, in this regard, the potential mediating effects of impression management. Through Mplus analysis, the authors specifically show that deep acting and surface acting affect impression management and that impression management activates abusive supervision.FindingsEmotional labor is critical in triggering abusive supervision through impression management. The study specifically shows that impression management mediates two types of relationships: (1) the relationship between deep acting and abusive supervision, and (2) the relationship between surface acting and abusive supervision. The findings contribute to the abusive supervision literature by clarifying how impression management functions.Originality/valueThis study, by addressing how emotional labor is a potential antecedent of abusive supervision, reveals that impression management can be a mixed blessing, insofar as emotional labor can contribute to abusive supervision.

The moderating role of perceived organizational support on the relationship between emotional labor and job-related outcomes

2015 ◽  
Vol 53 (3) ◽  
pp. 605-624 ◽  
Author(s):  
Won-Moo Hur ◽  
Su-Jin Han ◽  
Jeong-Ju Yoo ◽  
Tae Won Moon
Keyword(s):  
Job Satisfaction ◽  
Job Performance ◽  
Emotional Labor ◽  
Organizational Support ◽  
Perceived Organizational Support ◽  
Surface Acting ◽  
Deep Acting ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to attempt to investigate how emotional labor strategies (i.e. surface acting and deep acting) affect job performance through job satisfaction. Another important objective of this study was to see whether perceived organizational support (POS) moderates the relationship between emotional labor strategies and job-related outcomes (i.e. job satisfaction and job performance). Design/methodology/approach – Structural equation modeling analysis provided support for the hypotheses from a sample of 309 South Korean department store sales employees. Findings – The results revealed that surface acting had a negative effect, whereas deep acting had a positive effect on job satisfaction. In addition, the relationship between emotional labor strategies (i.e. surface acting and deep acting) and job performance was significantly mediated by job satisfaction. Finally, POS significantly moderated the relationship between surface acting and job satisfaction, as well as the relationship between deep acting and job performance. Originality/value – The findings of this study contributed to the literature by identifying the relationship between surface and deep acting on organizational outcomes (i.e. job satisfaction and job performance), especially in a collectivist society (i.e. South Korea). In addition, this study also confirmed the important role of POS based on the norm of reciprocity between an organization and its members.

Customer response to employee emotional labor: the structural relationship between emotional labor, job satisfaction, and customer satisfaction

2015 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-80 ◽  
Author(s):  
Won-Moo Hur ◽  
Tae-Won Moon ◽  
Yeon Sung Jung
Keyword(s):  
Job Satisfaction ◽  
Customer Satisfaction ◽  
Emotional Labor ◽  
Emotional Regulation ◽  
Surface Acting ◽  
Deep Acting ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Employee Job Satisfaction ◽  
Regulation Strategies ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose – This study aims to extend emotional labor theories to the customer outcomes by examining a theoretical model of how emotional labor performed by the service worker affects customer satisfaction in a mediated way. Design/methodology/approach – Structural equation modeling analyses partially support for our hypotheses from 282 dyadic survey data [i.e. service interactions customers (seniors) and service employees (caregivers)] from a home caregiver firm in South Korea. Findings – The results of our study found that employee’s emotional regulation strategies of deep acting and surface acting differentially affect customer satisfaction, and that employee’s job satisfaction mediates the relationship between employee’s emotional regulation strategies and customer satisfaction. More specifically, the relationship between surface acting and customer satisfaction is fully mediated by employee’s job satisfaction, whereas the relationship between deep acting and customer satisfaction is partially mediated by employee’s job satisfaction. Originality/value – Our study is the first to provide an empirical test of how employee job satisfaction mediates the relationship between employee emotional labor and customer satisfaction in service interactions. This research sheds light on the crucial role of employee job satisfaction that can be an important consideration to boost service quality and customer satisfaction by facilitating employee emotional labor.

Are employees' emotional labor strategies triggering or reducing customer incivility: a sociometer theory perspective

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaojun Zhan ◽  
Wenhao Luo ◽  
Hanyu Ding ◽  
Yanghao Zhu ◽  
Yirong Guo
Keyword(s):  
Emotional Labor ◽  
Self Esteem ◽  
Service Climate ◽  
Surface Acting ◽  
Deep Acting ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Service Employees ◽  
Customer Perception ◽  
The Relationship

PurposePrior studies have mainly attributed customer incivility to dispositional characteristics, whereas little attention has been paid to exploring service employees' role in triggering or reducing customer incivility. The purpose of the present study is to propose and test a model in which service employees' emotional labor strategies affect customer incivility via influencing customers' self-esteem threat, as well as examine the moderating role of customer's perception of service climate.Design/methodology/approachBased on a matched sample consisting of 317 employee-customer dyads in China, multiple regression analysis and indirect effect tests were employed to test our model.FindingsThe study shows that employee surface acting is positively related to customer incivility, whereas deep acting is negatively associated with customer incivility. Moreover, customer self-esteem threat mediates the relationship between both types of emotional labor and customer incivility. Customer perception of service climate moderates the relationship between deep acting and customer self-esteem threat.Originality/valueThe current research broadens the antecedents of customer incivility from the employee perspective and sheds more light on the role of customer self-esteem in the interactions between employees and customers. It also demonstrates a complementary relationship between service climate and individual employees' emotional labor strategies, thereby expanding the existing understanding of the management of employees' emotional labor.

Nurses’ emotions, emotional labor, and job satisfaction

2019 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 16-31
Author(s):  
Mikyoung Lee ◽  
Keum-Seong Jang
Keyword(s):  
Job Satisfaction ◽  
Emotional Labor ◽  
Emotional Experiences ◽  
Discrete Emotions ◽  
Surface Acting ◽  
Deep Acting ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mediating Role ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationships between emotional labor, emotions, and job satisfaction among nurses, and explore the mediating role of emotions in the relationship between emotional labor and job satisfaction. Design/methodology/approach A cross-sectional study was designed with 168 nurses in Korea. Structural equation modeling and path analysis were performed to analyze data. Findings Surface acting correlated positively with anxiety and frustration. Deep acting correlated positively with enjoyment and pride but correlated negatively with anxiety, anger and frustration. Enjoyment and pride correlated positively with job satisfaction; anger correlated negatively with job satisfaction. Deep acting correlated positively with job satisfaction, while surface acting did not show a significant relationship. Enjoyment, pride and anger mediated the relationship between deep acting and job satisfaction. Research limitations/implications This research expands empirical findings on nurses’ emotional experiences, by considering their discrete emotions rather than general affect. It is the first study to empirically examine the relationships between emotional labor, discrete emotions and job satisfaction, as well as the mediating role of emotions in the relationship between emotional labor and job satisfaction in the nursing field. The mediating role of emotions suggests that not only nurses and nurse managers but also hospital administrators should take nurses’ emotions into account to increase nurses’ well-being and their job satisfaction. Finally, differential influences of surface acting and deep acting on nurses’ emotional experiences and job satisfaction highlight the need for practical interventions to promote the use of deep acting among nurses. Originality/value This study confirms the mediating role of emotions in the relationship between emotional labor and job satisfaction in the nursing field. It encourages future research to pay greater attention to nurses’ emotions themselves along with emotional labor. Findings add an interdisciplinary aspect to research on nursing by assimilating psychological perspectives of emotion and emotion management research to this field.

Linking perceived organizational support to emotional labor

2014 ◽  
Vol 43 (6) ◽  
pp. 845-860 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sushanta Kumar Mishra
Keyword(s):  
Social Exchange ◽  
Emotional Labor ◽  
Organizational Support ◽  
Organizational Identification ◽  
Perceived Organizational Support ◽  
Mediation Effect ◽  
Surface Acting ◽  
Deep Acting ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Relationship

Purpose – Based on two studies on different occupational groups, the purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between perceived organizational support (POS) and different forms of emotional labor. Drawing from social identity theory, the present study extends the social exchange theory to provide an alternate explanation to the above relationships. Design/methodology/approach – The survey design following questionnaire in English language was physically administered among medical sales employees and subsequently among employees in the hospitality industry. Findings – The study found that POS is positively related to deep acting and negatively related to surface acting. The study further found that organizational identification mediates the relationship between POS and deep acting where as there was no mediation effect of organizational identification on the relationship between POS and surface acting. Research limitations/implications – The research relies on a cross-sectional design with a single source of data collected from two sources at different time periods. Practical implications – With the emergence of service economy there is an increasing emphasis on the performance of emotional labor. The present study suggests that organizations need to focus on organizational practices as employees’ perception of organizational support is related to the way they express their emotions during customer interactions. The finding of the study suggests that on what the organizations should do to motivate employees to perform expected emotional labor. Originality/value – The literature is relatively silent on the relationship between POS and different forms of emotional labor. The present study adds to the existing body of knowledge by explaining POS as an important antecedent of emotional labor. Further, the study contributes by exploring the mediation effect of organizational identification on the relationship between POS and different forms of emotional labor.

Older and Less Deviant? The Paths Through Emotional Labor and Organizational Cynicism

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yisheng Peng ◽  
Jie Ma ◽  
Wenqin Zhang ◽  
Steve Jex
Keyword(s):  
Age Differences ◽  
Emotional Labor ◽  
Workplace Deviance ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Surface Acting ◽  
Deep Acting ◽  
Diverse Workforce ◽  
Organizational Cynicism ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Employee Age

Abstract Previous research suggests that workplace deviance, one of the most pressing problems for today’s organizations, tends to decline as employees age. However, little is known about the mechanisms underlying the age-deviance relationship. Using aggregated 5-day daily diary data in a sample of 158 Chinese full-time employees, the present study examined age differences in the use of emotional labor strategies (i.e., surface acting and deep acting) and how these age differences relate to employee workplace deviance via organizational cynicism. Results found that age was negatively related to the use of both surface acting and deep acting. Emotional labor strategies (i.e., surface acting and deep acting) and organizational cynicism serially mediated the relationship between employee age and workplace deviance. The current research deepens our understanding of the process by which employee age relates to workplace deviance. This study also has implications for the management of an increasingly age-diverse workforce and can guide future interventions aiming at reducing workplace deviance, an issue of increasing concern to both organizations and society in general.

Influence of leader and employee emotional labor on service performance: A hierarchical linear modeling approach

2017 ◽  
Vol 45 (8) ◽  
pp. 1233-1244 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiu-Li Tang ◽  
Ying-Kang Gu ◽  
Lijuan Cui
Keyword(s):  
Hierarchical Linear Modeling ◽  
Emotional Labor ◽  
Service Performance ◽  
Surface Acting ◽  
Linear Modeling ◽  
Deep Acting ◽  
Labor Theory ◽  
Service Oriented ◽  
Leadership Context ◽  
The Relationship

Given the importance of emotional labor for service-oriented enterprises, it is highly valuable to explore how leader emotional labor affects the emotional labor strategy used by employees. This study was based on affective events theory and we used hierarchical linear modeling to explore cross-hierarchical relationships among leader emotional labor, employee emotional labor, and employee service performance. We tested the model with data from 534 employees and their immediate leaders working in 23 service-oriented enterprises in China. Results showed that leaders' surface acting positively influenced employees' surface acting, and leaders' deep acting positively influenced employees' deep acting and service performance. Employees' deep acting mediated the relationship between leaders' deep acting and employee service performance. Our findings enhance understanding of leader emotional labor and help to advance emotional labor theory in the leadership context.

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