Discussion

Emotional Labor

In preparation for this discussion, review the following resources:

• Emotional Labor Study at the University of Memphis- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xtDf6YIS_gM
• Job Stress (Clark, 1995)

You may also want to read, "Stress in the Workplace: A costly epidemic."- http://fdu.edu/newspubs/magazine/99su/stress.html

There are many stressors in the workplace that affect employees. Emotional stressors are no different. As our economy has moved from a manufacturing to a service-based economy, there are many more workers in a variety of occupational fields that are expected to manage their emotions according to employer demands. Emotional labor refers to a form of emotion regulation that creates a publicly visible facial and bodily display within the workplace. The increasing prevalence of this type of work introduces a new set of stressors in the workplace.

In your initial post

• Describe examples of emotional labor in the following professions:

o Teachers
o Nursing
o Human Resources

• Give a suggestion of what employers can do to help employees address the personal impact of emotional labor?

Your initial post should be at least 250 words in length.