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

Abstract

AbstractPrevious 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.