Emotional Labor as a Dynamic Process in Service Organizations: Development of a Multi-Perspective, Multilevel Model

Abstract

In this chapter, we develop and present the Multi-Perspective Multilevel Model of emotional labor in organizations. This model is based on three perspectives: (1) a service requirement, (2) an intra-psychic process, and (3) an emotional display, each involving five levels of analysis: within-person, between persons, in interpersonal exchanges, in groups, and across the organization as a whole. Our model is differentiated from earlier characterizations of emotional labor in that we propose that the phenomenon begins with energy generation instead of energy depletion; and is neither a one-way nor a one-by-one service episode. We further proffer that the intra-psychic processes embedded in emotional labor represent a form of social self-regulation that impacts across multiple levels within service organizations. We conclude by discussing the implications and limitations of our model for emotional labor research.

Citation

Gracia, E. and Ashkanasy, N.M. (2014), "Emotional Labor as a Dynamic Process in Service Organizations: Development of a Multi-Perspective, Multilevel Model", Emotions and the Organizational Fabric (Research on Emotion in Organizations, Vol. 10), Emerald Group Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 331-365. https://doi.org/10.1108/S1746-979120140000010021