Workplace well-being and mental health have become critical concerns in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Burnout, a major consequence of poorly managed emotional labour, was once primarily associated with professions like nursing and teaching. Today, it is increasingly recognised as a pervasive issue across all industries.

Emotional labour refers to the effort required to recognise, regulate, and modify one's emotions to meet certain expectations of a working environment.It involves managing one’s inner feelings to display appropriate emotions, such as maintaining a cheerful demeanour or demonstrating empathy during challenging interactions with customers, clients, or co-workers.

“Currently, the management of emotional labour leans heavily on reactive measures,” explains Dr Sean Lee, Senior Lecturer in Psychology at James Cook University in Singapore. “These include deploying employee assistance programs (EAPs) and/or reducing workloads after maladaptive symptoms appear.”

In his recent paper titled “Toward a more pre-emptive approach to managing work emotions and emotional labour”, Dr Lee advocates for proactive strategies to minimise emotional strain before it escalates. By analysing the multistage process of emotion elicitation, he identifies two critical points for intervention: incorporating emotional requirements into job descriptions and hiring processes, and regulating employees’ mood within workplace environments.

Clearly defining emotional requirements – such as the types of emotional displays or frequency of interactions – can help candidates self-select roles that align with their emotional capabilities. Similarly, integrating these requirements into recruitment criteria ensures a better fit between employees and their roles. For current employees, ongoing mood modulation strategies (e.g., incorporation of specific mood valence cues within workplace designs), can help to encourage healthier emotional responses.

“Proactive strategies, combined with existing support measures, can foster healthier workplaces,” Dr Lee concludes. “These approaches not only reduce burnout but also enhance job satisfaction by aligning emotional expectations with employees’ abilities.”

Dr Lee’s work emphasises a fundamental shift in perspective: from crisis management to resilience-building. By adopting proactive emotional labour strategies, organisations can better support employee well-being and create more sustainable work environments.

Paper

Lee, S. T. H. (2024). Toward a more pre-emptive approach to managing work emotions and emotional labor. Journal of Economic and Administrative Sciences. https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/jeas-03-2024-0081/full/pdf?title=toward-a-more-pre-emptive-approach-to-managing-work-emotions-and-emotional-labor

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Contacts

Dr Sean Lee: [email protected]

Media: Ms Pinky Sibal [email protected] / Ms Hoe Shu Rin [email protected]