Emotional Labor in Raudhatul Athfal (RA) Teachers’ Multi-Role Work: Initial Findings

Objective To explore the status quo of emotional labor in operation room nurses and to analyze its effects on quality of professional life, so as to provide a reference for improving physical and mental health of operation room nurses and driving the building and development of the specialized nurse team. Methods Totally 203 operation room nurses from 4 general ClassⅢ Grade A hospitals in Jiangxi province from May to June 2018 were selected using convenient sampling, and the status quo of their emotional labor was investigated with the general information questionnaire, Nurse's Emotional Labor Scale and Nurse's Quality of Professional Life Scale. Results The total average score of emotional labor of the operation room nurses was (3.68±0.55) , including (3.57±0.76) for deep acting, (4.28±0.80) for emotional expression and (3.50±0.74) for surface acting from high to low. Univariate analysis revealed that there was statistically significant difference in surface acting scores between operation room nurses with different length of service, in deep acting scores between operation room nurses with different age, professional title and clinical teaching and in emotional expression scores between operation room scores with different educational background (P<0.05) . Emotional labor was correlated with the various factors of quality of professional life. Surface acting had negative predictive power for kindness satisfaction (β=-0.317, P<0.01) , and positive predictive power for job burnout (β=0.337, P<0.01) and secondary trauma (β=0.264, P<0.01) . Deep acting had positive predictive power for kindness satisfaction, and negative predictive power for job burnout (β=0.303, P<0.01) and secondary trauma (β=0.281, P<0.01) . Emotional expression requirements had positive predictive power for kindness satisfaction (β=0.191, P<0.01) . Multivariate linear regression analysis showed that surface acting, deep acting and emotional expression requirements were the main influencing factors to kindness satisfaction, and that surface acting and deep acting were the main influencing factors to job burnout and secondary trauma. Conclusions The emotional labor of operation room nurses stays at a medium level, and the emotional labor strategy mostly frequently used is deep acting. Surface acting, deep acting and emotional expression requirements in emotional labor have predictive power for quality of professional life, and managers should pay attention to the education and training of emotional labor for operation room nurses. Key words: Nurses; Operation room; Emotional labor; Quality of professional life

Purpose Amid growing global concern for the psychological sustainability of healthcare professionals (HCPs), this study investigates the role of Workplace Spirituality (WOPS) as a soft total quality management (TQM) practice in enhancing employee wellbeing. Grounded in conservation of resources (COR) theory, WOPS is conceptualized as an organizational resource caravan that shapes emotional labour strategies specifically, surface acting, deep acting and genuine acting as mediators of wellbeing. Design/methodology/approach A cross-sectional survey design was employed, utilizing data from 555 healthcare professionals working in private healthcare institutions in India. Validated, multi-dimensional instruments were used to measure WOPS, emotional labour strategies and employee wellbeing. The conceptual model was empirically tested using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) to examine direct and mediated effects. Findings The results provide robust empirical support for WOPS as a dual-pathway enhancer of wellbeing: directly through meaning-making and indirectly through emotional regulation. Specifically, genuine acting emerged as a significant positive mediator, indicating its resource-preserving and authenticity-enhancing function. In contrast, surface acting negatively mediated the relationship, reflecting its resource-depleting and dissonance-inducing nature. Deep acting was not a significant mediator, suggesting its limited adaptive value within high-intensity caregiving roles. Research limitations/implications Theoretically, this study advances COR theory by conceptualizing emotional labour strategies as asymmetrical mediators, where surface acting depletes, and genuine acting replenishes, psychological resources. Practically, it provides actionable guidance for healthcare leaders and HR professionals aiming to embed meaning-driven, value-oriented HRM practices that bolster emotional regulation and promote sustainable employee wellbeing. However, the cross-sectional design limits causal inference, and the exclusive focus on private healthcare professionals in India may restrict generalizability to public or cross-cultural contexts. Future research should adopt longitudinal, multi-level and cross-cultural methodologies to capture the evolving nexus between organizational spirituality, emotional regulation and wellbeing across settings and time. Originality/value This study uniquely positions WOPS as a soft-TQM practice and redefines emotional labour as an organizationally shaped response rather than a solely individual burden. It introduces genuine acting as a critical yet underexplored emotional labour mechanism and expands the geographical scope of workplace spirituality research into the Indian healthcare context.

To investigate the relationship between emotional labour strategies and job satisfaction among nurses in Turkey. Nursing is one of the professions in which emotional labour is heavily used. The relationship between emotional labour strategies and job satisfaction has many different consequences in nursing. Although studies have focused on the relationship between emotional labour and job satisfaction among nurses abroad, no studies on the subject have been found in Turkey. A cross-sectional descriptive design was employed. The study was conducted with 281 nurses working in a university hospital and three public hospitals in Manisa, Turkey. Research data were collected using the Personal Information Form, Emotional Labour Scale and Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire. Descriptive statistics and Pearson correlation analysis were used in data evaluation. Analyses showed that the type of emotional labour strategy most frequently exhibited by nurses was surface acting. In surface acting, behaviours do not reflect employees' true feelings. Job satisfaction of nurses was higher than the medium level. A negative correlation was found between deep acting and job satisfaction. In deep acting, employees try to feel the emotions appropriate to the behaviour expected of them. Nurses' emotional labour may cause some undesirable consequences. Nurses' emotional labour strategies are related to their job satisfaction levels. Managers should be aware of the emotional labour of nurses and its possible negative consequences. Management strategies that target the negative consequences of emotional labour are important not only for the well-being of nurses but also for the quality of patient care.

This study aimed to examine the associations among emotional labor strategies, stress from emotional labor, and burnout in nurses. We employed a descriptive cross-sectional design. Data were collected from May to November 2018 in South Korea using structured questionnaires. Participants were 303 nurses from 27 hospitals, who were recruited by convenience sampling. Emotional labor strategies (surface acting, deep acting, and expression of naturally felt emotions), stress, and burnout were self-reported. A path analysis using structural equation modeling was performed to examine the associations among the study variables. Bivariate analyses revealed that surface acting was positively correlated with stress and burnout, deep acting was negatively correlated with burnout, and naturally felt emotions were negatively correlated with stress and burnout. The path analysis revealed that surface acting was positively associated with stress, naturally felt emotions were negatively associated with burnout, and the stress from emotional labor was positively associated with burnout. Although surface acting was not directly associated with burnout, it was indirectly associated through stress. Surface acting involves regulation and suppression of one's felt emotions. The findings of this study suggest that hospitals need to reduce expectations for surface acting to reduce nurses' stress and burnout. Organizational efforts to provide interventions that improve nurses' ability to manage their emotions in interactions with patients might effectively foster nurses' well-being. Surface acting might contribute to nurses' burnout, and naturally felt emotions might reduce nurses' burnout. Nurse managers should thus provide opportunities to discuss the utilized emotional labor strategies and encourage appropriate responses depending on the patient context. Programs that promote emotional competence may reduce the adverse effects associated with nurses' emotional labor and foster effective coping strategies.

Turnover is a costly and time-consuming expense, especially for service industry businesses. To date, little is known about whether and how emotional labor may activate employee turnover intention in the service industry. In order to solve the above problems and fill the gaps, this study aimed to verify how emotional labor can trigger turnover intention during the COVID-19 pandemic. Based on job characteristics theory and job demands–resources theory, this study examined whether emotional display rules and emotional labor strategies affect turnover intention brought on by emotional exhaustion and job dissatisfaction, with fear of COVID-19 as a moderator. After testing our hypotheses using a sample of 623 individuals from China’s service industry, this study found that emotional display rules (positive and negative display rules) are significantly related to emotional labor strategies (deep acting, expression of naturally felt emotions, and surface acting). In particular, positive display rules have a positive impact on deep acting and the expression of naturally felt emotions and are more closely related to the expression of naturally felt emotions. Negative display rules negatively affect surface acting. Moreover, emotional labor strategies correlate significantly with emotional exhaustion, job satisfaction/dissatisfaction, and subsequent turnover intention. Thus, deep acting and the expression of naturally felt emotions are related to low emotional exhaustion and high job satisfaction, while surface acting is related to high emotional exhaustion and low job satisfaction. Emotional exhaustion has a negative effect on job satisfaction and a positive effect on turnover intention. Job satisfaction significantly weakens turnover intention. In addition, fear of COVID-19 has a moderating effect on the relationship between job satisfaction and turnover intention. The group with a high fear of COVID-19 has higher turnover intention even in job satisfaction situations than the group with a low fear of COVID-19. This work advances emotional labor research by combining two dimensions of emotional display rules and three dimensions of emotional labor strategies into a framework, investigating the mechanism through which emotional labor influences turnover intention, and revealing the moderating effect of fear of COVID-19 in the process.

Emotional labor is a crucial yet often overlooked aspect of effective leadership. To address this, the current study adopts the Emotion as Social Information (EASI) model as a theoretical framework to investigate the influence of leaders' emotional labor and perceived appropriateness on employees' emotional labor. A two (leaders' emotional labor strategies: surface acting vs. deep acting) by two (perceived appropriateness: appropriate vs. inappropriate) between-subjects experiment was designed with a sample of 120 front-line service employees from hotels in Shanghai. The results showed that regardless of whether the perception of a leader's surface acting was deemed appropriate or not, employees tended to perform surface acting, while the impact of the perceived appropriateness regarding the leader's deep acting was different, wherein an appropriate display of deep acting by the leader significantly influenced employees to engage in deep acting themselves. The managerial implications and limitations of the findings are also discussed.

Despite increasing interest being given to dysfunctional customer behavior in multiple service sectors, it is unclear how and why different types of dysfunctional customer behavior (verbal abuse, disproportionate demand, and illegitimate complaint) affect frontline employees’ emotional labor during the service interactions. Drawing upon the conservation of resources theory, we propose a conceptual model in which verbal abuse, disproportionate demand, and illegitimate complaint differentially influence frontline employees’ emotional labor strategies (surface acting and deep acting). Further, the boundary conditions of these relationships are considered by introducing perceived organizational support and customer orientation as moderators. Using survey data from 436 frontline employees of five call centers in China, hypotheses were tested through a hierarchical regression analysis. The results indicated that verbal abuse and illegitimate complaint exerted positive effects on surface acting. Particularly, these positive effects were weaker when frontline employees perceived organizational support was high. Also, verbal abuse’s positive effect on surface acting was weaker when frontline employees’ customer orientation was high. Customer’s verbal abuse, disproportionate demand, and illegitimate complaint negatively influenced frontline employees’ deep acting. The negative effect of disproportionate demand on deep acting was weaker when perceived organizational support was high. However, when frontline employees’ customer orientation was high, the negative effects of disproportionate demand and illegitimate complaints on deep acting were weaker.

The concept of ‘emotional labour’ has been suggested as a useful framework for studying the relationship between emotionally demanding work and well being of health-care staff. The framework distinguishes ‘surface acting’ from ‘deep acting’ and suggests a predominant reliance on surface acting as a risk for emotional exhaustion. The relationship between emotional demands and emotional exhaustion among staff members working in high secure forensic psychiatric care (n = 131) was studied using the framework of emotional labour. Surface acting was found to partly mediate the relationship between emotional demands and emotional exhaustion. Experiencing the relationship with the manager as supportive contributed negatively to the prediction of emotional exhaustion. Workplace support did not moderate the relationship between emotional labour and emotional exhaustion. Although staff members working on wards in the direct care of forensic psychiatric patients tend to use both deep and surface acting during their work, our study results also show that deep acting and surface acting are differently related to emotional exhaustion. The framework of emotional labour indeed showed to be a useful paradigm within this population. Therefore, suggestions are made to pay attention to emotional labour strategies in future research and practice.

PurposeThe current study aims to examine the antecedents and outcomes of emotional labor strategies (i.e. surface acting and deep acting) among service employees in China. The study proposed employees’ perceived closeness with customers and customers’ socioeconomic status will predict deep acting and surface acting, respectively. It further examined the mediating role of emotional labor between perceived customer attributes and employee well-being (i.e. burnout and job satisfaction).Design/methodology/approachOne hundred and one employees at a jewelry store in China completed a survey regarding their perceptions of customers, use of emotional labor and well-being (e.g. job satisfaction and burnout). Correlational and regression analyses were conducted to examine the predictors and outcomes of different emotional labor strategies.FindingsPerceived closeness with the customer group predicted employees’ use of deep acting, whereas perceived customer socioeconomic status did not predict the use of surface acting. Deep acting was negatively related with burnout, whereas surface acting did not predict burnout. Deep acting mediated the relationship between perceived closeness with customers and burnout.Practical implicationsTo maintain employee well-being, organizations can promote a service climate to enhance employees’ perceived relationship with customers.Originality/valueThe study specifies the interpersonal context in which employees use different emotional labor strategies; the perceived closeness with customers predicts less burnout via the use of more deep acting. This study also supplements the existing research on emotional labor based on a Chinese sample; deep acting predicts employee well-being.

PurposeThis study investigates the effect of authentic leadership on service employees’ emotional labour strategies, surface acting and deep acting, from a human energy perspective.Design/methodology/approachA three-wave survey was conducted in a hotel chain in China, and 347 valid responses were obtained. Mplus software was used for structural equation modelling and bootstrapping analysis.FindingsThis study finds the following: authentic leadership predicts service employees’ emotional labour strategies; job insecurity mediates the influence of authentic leadership on surface acting but not on deep acting; relational energy mediates both surface and deep acting; and relational energy has more negative (positive) indirect effects than job insecurity.Practical implicationsThe findings provide hospitality managers with insights into how to improve service employees’ capacity for emotional regulation. Hospitality managers should show more authenticity, pay attention to subordinates’ energy level and select and recruit candidates with positive energy traits. Hospitality organisations should encourage, select and train managers to behave as authentic leaders.Originality/valueThis study links authentic leadership with service employees’ emotional management in the hospitality industry. Moreover, it demonstrates the energising function of authentic leadership and introduces the new perspective of human energy to emotional labour research.

BackgroundCollege counselors often endure significant work stress, which directly impacts their emotional labor. Although previous studies have described the association between work stress and emotional labor, the critical role of psychological resilience has been overlooked. The goal of this research is to explore the correlation between work stress and emotional labor among college counselors, and further tests the moderating effect of psychological resilience in this relationship. It aims to furnish empirical evidence for higher education institutions to manage stress effectively among this population, promote deeper expressions of emotional labor, minimize superficial displays. Additionally, it provides practical basis for career happiness management at both the institutional level and for individual counselors.MethodsA cluster sampling method was employed, and through online means, 351 full-time counselors were selected as research subjects. Data were collected using the Work Stress Questionnaire, the Psychological Resilience Questionnaire, and the Two-Dimensional Emotional Labour Questionnaire. Normality tests and common method bias tests were conducted using the K-S test and Harman’s single-factor method, respectively. Descriptive statistics were performed using mean z-tests, paired t-tests, and partial correlations. The moderating effect was tested using hierarchical regression analysis and simple slope analysis. The significance level for the analysis was α = 0.05 (two-sided).ResultsThe mean scores (M ± SD ) for work stress, psychological resilience, deep acting, and surface acting were (2.881 ± 0.699), (3.398 ± 0.800), (3.723 ± 0.837), and (3.234 ± 1.014), respectively. Deep acting was significantly higher than surface acting (t = 5.159, p < 0.001). Work stress was significantly negatively correlated with psychological resilience and deep acting (r = − 0.417, r = − 0.816, both p < 0.01), and positively correlated with surface acting (r = 0.812, p < 0.01). Psychological resilience was significantly positively correlated with deep acting (r = 0.679, p < 0.01) and negatively correlated with surface acting (r = − 0.562, p < 0.01). Psychological resilience did not have a significant moderating effect on the relationship between work stress and deep acting (β=−0.053, p > 0.05). However, it had a significant moderating effect on the relationship between work stress and surface acting (β=-0.167, p < 0.001), explaining 2.9% of the variance in surface acting (∆R²= 0.027).ConclusionCollege counselors experience high levels of work stress, with deep acting in emotional labor being higher than surface acting. The relationship between work stress and emotional labor among university counselors reveals a significant positive correlation with surface acting, while exhibiting a significant negative correlation with deep acting. Psychological resilience weakens the positive association between work stress and surface acting. It is recommended to reduce work stress and improve psychological resilience levels to enhance deep acting, reduce surface acting, and improve work efficiency among college counselors.

Emotional labor refers to the process by which employees are required to regulate their emotions in accordance with professionally specified requirements, rules, and guidelines. In the context of teaching, a significant portion of work is dedicated to the emotional labor of the teachers. Teaching, as a multifaceted profession, encompasses cognitive as well as emotional dimensions. Teachers consistently engage in emotional labor as an essential component of achieving pedagogical objectives and fostering positive learning outcomes. This review aimed to examine the emotional labor of elementary and high school teachers. The study was guided by four key questions: (1) What are the emotional labor levels of the teachers? (2) How do teachers engage in emotional labor in terms of surface acting and deep acting? (3) What is the relationship between naturally felt emotions and surface acting and deep acting? (4) What are the remaining gaps in the literature regarding the study of emotional labor, surface acting, and deep acting among teachers in elementary and high schools? We systematically selected ten articles relevant to our objective to confirm the components related to teachers&amp;rsquo; emotional labor, with a specific focus on surface acting, deep acting, and naturally felt emotions in elementary and high school teachers. A comprehensive database search was conducted, in adherence to the PRISMA statement, to locate relevant studies investigating &amp;ldquo;teachers&amp;rsquo; emotional labor&amp;rdquo; and synthesizing surface acting and deep acting. The PICOS approach was used to refine research inquiries and formulate search terms. Overall, the literature review highlights notable associations between surface acting and deep acting. However, there is no conclusive evidence that shows the correlation between deep acting and naturally felt emotions. There is considerable room for improving our understanding of emotional labor, including study methodologies, explored variables, and the recognition of historical and cultural influences that moderate and mediate the dynamics of emotional labor. This systematic review sought to delineate and consolidate existing research insights on teachers&amp;rsquo; emotional labor.

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.

Background and Aims: In the airline industry, client satisfaction and service quality are critical, thus, understanding the impact of emotional labor on job performance is essential. While previous research has highlighted the importance of emotional labor, the specific effects of its dimensions - Surface Acting, Deep Acting, Emotional Consonance, and Suppression - on job performance remained underexplored. This study filled this gap by examining how these emotional labor strategies influence job performance among airline ground personnel. Methodology: This study utilized a cross-sectional quantitative research design, employing purposive sampling to gather data from 100 airline ground personnel. A validated and adapted questionnaire was used to measure the dimensions of emotional labor and job performance. Descriptive statistics, including means and standard deviations, were calculated, and Pearson correlation analysis was conducted to assess the relationships between emotional labor strategies and job performance. Results: The findings revealed high levels of Surface Acting (M = 4.03), Emotional Consonance (M = 4.04), and Suppression (M = 3.93), with moderate levels of Deep Acting (M = 2.81). Overall, job performance was rated positively (grand M = 4.07). Strong, significant correlations were observed between emotional labor and job performance, particularly for Deep Acting (r = .743, p &lt; .001) and Suppression (r = .753, p &lt; .001). These results suggested that employees who engage more frequently in these strategies tend to demonstrate higher job performance. Conclusions: The study underscores the critical role of emotional labor in the airline industry, demonstrating that specific emotional labor strategies are closely associated with enhanced job performance. For managers and policymakers, these findings highlight the importance of supporting employees in effectively managing their emotional labor to optimize job performance and overall service quality. The insights gained can inform targeted interventions and training programs aimed at improving employee satisfaction and performance.

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine how emotional labor strategies (deep and surface acting) impact engagement through stress via two different emotional displays (suppressing negative emotions and expressing positive emotions) in coworker-to-coworker relationships.Design/methodology/approachThis study used psychological and temporal separation techniques to survey hotel managers (Study 1) and hospitality students with frontline service jobs (Study 2).FindingsAcross both samples, the results showed that surface acting was related to suppressing negative emotions, which was positively related to stress, deep acting was related to expressing positive emotions, which was negatively related to stress, and stress was negatively related to engagement, suggesting that emotional labor affects engagement through either deep acting or surface acting and their related emotional displays.Practical implicationsThe results show that hospitality employees either genuinely express positive emotions as a strategy to deep act or suppress negative emotions as a strategy to surface act with coworkers. Both emotional displays were related to engagement, suggesting that employers should alter expectations for emotional displays among coworkers and train employees how to manage their emotions to have a positive impact on engagement.Originality/valueThe unique contribution of the current paper is showing how emotional labor is related to engagement in the context of coworker-to-coworker emotional labor, which is rarely found in customer-based emotional labor. The results also provide a better understanding of how surface and deep acting are used in a hospitality context, because the measures of surface and deep acting usually focus on broad emotions rather than discrete emotions.