The Role of Job Demands–Resources (JDR) between Service Workers’ Emotional Labor and Burnout: New Directions for Labor Policy at Local Government

Abstract

Recently, research on service workers’ emotional labor has received considerable attention, both in theory and practice. Emotional labor has been reported to cause both stress and burnout in service workers, eventually leading to a decrease in organizational productivity. In this context, there is also a growing interest in identifying ways to reduce such burnout. This study aimed to examine the influence of emotional labor and job demands–resources (JD–R) on service workers’ burnout. Specifically, we analyzed the direct, indirect, and moderating effects of JD–R on burnout. Data were collected from service workers (N = 1517) in public sectors. Results revealed that three dimensions—emotional labor, intensity/variety, and surface acting—increase burnout, whereas deep acting decreases it. Additionally, job demands were found to increase burnout, while job resources decreased it. Among the job demands, customer contact had the greatest positive impact on burnout, followed by role ambiguity and workload, respectively. Among the job resources, self-efficacy and social support had the greatest negative impact on burnout. Finally, customer contact, role ambiguity, job autonomy, and social support were identified as moderators that worsened or buffered the impact of emotional labor on burnout.

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