Emotional Labor Learning Objective 4.3
Emotional labor: an employee’s expression of organizationally desired emotions during interpersonal transactions at work
Emotional dissonance: when an employee has to project one emotion while simultaneously feeling another
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In many jobs there is an implied agreement on the types of emotions that should be expressed. For example, waitresses are supposed to be friendly and cheerful whether they are currently feeling that emotion or not. When employees don’t feel the emotion they are required to express, they may experience emotional dissonance. This can lead to burnout and frustration with the job.