Inteligência emocional no Turismo: um estudo sobre os trabalhadores de empresas de foodservice no Sul do Brasil

Abstract

The foodservice industry demands high levels of positive emotional behavior from all workers, especially those who interact directly with consumers. For this reason, emotional intelligence is an area of interest for foodservice. The objective of the study was to analyse the emotional intelligence (EI) of workers in foodservice companies in the cities of Itajaí and Balneário Camboriú, in southern Brazil. To that end, a survey was carried out with a sample of 284 respondents. The data collection instrument was based on the WLEIS scale. Analyses were performed using SPSS and SmartPLS software. As a result, it was seen that employees in the foodservice sector demonstrate how to use their emotions, but have difficulties in managing them. The use of emotion was the EI dimension that obtained the best results, and the emotion regulation dimension was the one that obtained the lowest averages. It is considered that EI is influenced by variables linked to gender, educational level and work position. The information gathered can assist in the subsidy of training and development programs to help employees in the foodservice sector.