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Learning to effectively manage your emotions: the impact of Emotional Intelligence (EI) in caring roles

Publication Type : Journal Article

Source : Development and Learning in Organizations: An International Journal, Emerald Publishing Limited, Volume ahead-of-print, Issue ahead-of-print (2021)

Url : https://doi.org/10.1108/DLO-11-2020-0216

Keywords : Emotional Intelligence, Emotional Labor, job satisfaction, Nurses, Self-managed Learning, Surface Acting

Campus : Kochi

School : School of Business

Department : Department of Management

Year : 2021

Abstract : Purpose Psychological constructs like emotional labor, emotional intelligence etc. are gaining importance now to understand employee outcomes such as job satisfaction in a health care setting. The study aims to investigate the relationship between Surface Acting (SA) an emotional labor strategy, and Job satisfaction, and the moderating effect of Emotional intelligence (EI) among practicing nurses. Design/methodology/approach The authors collected data through self-reporting questionnaires administered to a sample of 141 nurses working in multi-specialty hospitals in a prominent city in India and analyzed using structural equation modeling. Findings A negative relationship was found between surface acting and job satisfaction but was found positive when EI was introduced as a moderator. Research limitations/implications The respondent population was females only and diversity in terms of gender was not obtained. Practical implications The study finds significant practical and theoretical contributions to the primary caregivers in a health care setting. It helps to understand the interplay of emotions in this job and use EI as an internal resource to mitigate the harmful effects of continued SA emotional labor strategy to job satisfaction. Social implications It gains a better understanding of the emotion-related parameters in the nursing profession and gives inputs to the community. It throws light on how internal resources can be used for better job satisfaction which in turn leads to better quality care in the health care industry. Originality/value Extant literature has been discussing SA as a negative strategy for positive employee outcomes, but the present study gives insights on how this can be mitigated by using EI as a resource.

Cite this Research Publication : S. P. Mukundan and Dr. Dhanya Manayath, “Learning to effectively manage your emotions: the impact of Emotional Intelligence (EI) in caring roles”, Development and Learning in Organizations: An International Journal, vol. ahead-of-print, no. ahead-of-print, 2021.

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