Chapter 8 Emotion Management in Cross-Cultural Perspective: “Smile Training” in Japanese and North American Service Organizations

Abstract

This paper offers a cross-cultural examination of emotion management in two service organizations: a Japanese specialty shop and a chain of grocery stores in the US. Building on an overview of service culture in the US and its domestication in Japan, we provide an analysis of the two organizational case studies, focusing on their common initiation of a “behavior campaign,” its normative character, perceptions, and repercussions. The paper concludes by focusing on the comparative aspect of the analysis, locating the organizational management of emotions in the context of national culture, and focusing on the organizational use of broader emotional blueprints of socialization related to collectivism and individualism, such as “shame” (in Japanese culture) and “guilt” (in North American culture).

Citation

Raz, A.E. and Rafaeli, A. (2007), "Chapter 8 Emotion Management in Cross-Cultural Perspective: “Smile Training” in Japanese and North American Service Organizations", Härtel, C.E.J., Ashkanasy, N.M. and Zerbe, W.J. (Ed.) Functionality, Intentionality and Morality (Research on Emotion in Organizations, Vol. 3), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 199-220. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1746-9791(07)03008-8