Antecedents and consequences of anger among restaurant employees

Abstract

This study sought to identify pertinent antecedents and consequences of anger in the foodservice industry. Further, this study investigated differences in the way that anger affected part-time and full-time employees across individual and organizational factors. Online survey questionnaires were distributed to panel participants who worked part- or full-time in the foodservice industry. Partial least square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was applied to test the proposed research model. Multi-group analysis was applied to detect the potential differences between part- and full-time employees. The results of this study revealed that emotional stability and distributive justice negatively influenced anger and that anger then negatively influenced work-life balance. Across groups, it was found that distributive justice reduced part-time employee anger more effectively than it did the full-time employees and work-life balance positively increased career satisfaction more strongly for part-time than full-time employees. Results suggest that it is important for part-time employees to perceive distributive justice and work-life balance in order to mitigate anger and increase career satisfaction, more so than full-time employees. This study provides evidence for how anger, an inescapable, negative emotion, is influenced by individual and environmental factors, and how it influences employee behavior for part- and full-time employees. The study also builds on extant understanding of work-related stress by extending its application to the foodservice context.