JOURNAL OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS EDUCATION - Naspaa

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Emotional Labor: Why and How to Teach ItPoint 2: Explain how and why emotional labor is exercised in public service jobs.For this, a list of jobs that require person-to-person exchanges can begenerated, and the nature of their transactions can be explored. In mostclasses, there will be students who have experience in a variety of jobs, andtheir involvement in class discussion will enrich a greater understanding of thedynamics. This discussion can be used as a platform for delineating requiredskills, such as sensing the emotive state of the citizen, determining the bestaffective response to achieve the goal of the transaction, controlling one’s ownemotional state while responding, and resolving the uncomfortable feelings onemay have after an exchange.Point 3: Although the outcome is usually positive, there can be a negative result.Until recently, focus on the outcomes of emotional labor targeted onlythe negative of employee burnout (e.g., Golembiewski & Munzenrider, 1988;Golembiewski, Munzenrider, & Stevenson, 1986). Current research confirmsthat burnout can result from the performance of emotion work, but it occursless often than one might think. More importantly, the successful performanceof emotion work results in extraordinarily high levels of job satisfaction, andprovides workers with a sense that their work (a) has made a difference insomeone’s life, (b) has meaning beyond bringing home a paycheck, (c) enhancesjob satisfaction, and (d) sustains their commitment to public service (Guy,Newman, & Mastracci, 2008). Most recently, performance data indicate thatthose who receive public services give higher satisfaction ratings to workers whoare skilled in emotion work (Hsieh & Guy, 2009).Point 4: Relate the service component of the state-citizen exchange to thecustomer-service component of retail sales.This will drive home the point that an emphasis on service is expected inmany settings, and that while cognitive skills are important, affective skills, inessence, “seal the deal.” A citizen who is satisfied with services received is a citizenwho is more likely to appreciate and support the work of the state. Workers whogain personal satisfaction from the job, and feel as if they are improving the livesof those served, are more likely to stay with the organization and to providesuperior performance.Walking the WalkDrama workshop: Engaging in emotional labor is akin to method acting(Hochschild, 1983), so experiential learning in this area is an entirely appropriateway to develop students’ skills. McGill University management professor HenryMintzberg (2009) incorporates drama workshops into the first module of his“International Masters Program in Practicing Management” (accessible onlineat www.impm.org). Developing a relationship with a faculty member from yourJournal of Public Affairs Education 135
Emotional Labor: Why and How to Teach Ituniversity’s theater department in order to facilitate at least one session withstudents goes a long way toward internalizing the principles of emotional labor inpublic service. Moreover, a drama workshop can spur enlightening discussions onthe tension between the need to engage in deep acting, and the ethics of doing so.Self-assessment: A range of assessment tools exists to help students discovertheir own communication styles. None of us communicate or exert emotionallabor in the same way. Similar patterns exist, but discovering one’s personal style ofcommunication helps students to better understand how they “do” emotional labor.Available assessment methods can be as simple as self-administered paperand Web-based quizzes, or as complex as off-site, multi-day retreats facilitated byprofessionals. The Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) is perhaps the most wellknown,oft-used, and oft-imitated assessment instrument for a range of career- andpsychological-based applications, and it includes styles of communication andinterpersonal relations (Myers & Myers, 2009). How to Become a Better Negotiator,by Luecke and Patterson (2008), is published by AMACOM, a division of theAmerican Management Association. It includes a communication assessmenttool that has been used by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers andthe U.S. Army Military Intelligence School, among other institutions. What’s MyCommunication Style? (Teambuilders Plus, 2009) is a multi-media training andassessment program intended for use in a facilitated group context. The ForteInstitute for Interpersonal Communication offers a series of interactive teambuildingseminars, executive communication preparation for meetings, coaching toimprove communication performance for individuals and groups, and customizedoff-site retreats facilitated by certified professionals.Class assignment: In conjunction with lectures on emotional labor, anassignment that helps students comprehend how it is exercised and experiencedon the job reinforces the subject and aids learning. This can be achieved byasking students to interview a public service worker who regularly has personto-personcontact with citizens. This could include those who staff phonelines or who meet face-to-face with the public, but would exclude e-mailonlyinteractions, because they do not require emotional spontaneity. Eligibleemployees include public school teachers, social service workers, crisis linecall-takers, police officers, firefighters, intake workers, probation counselors,courtroom staff, university admissions staff, employment training staff, and cityhall receptionists, among many others.Interview questions could include the following: (a) Tell me about yourwork, (b) Tell me about a case/interaction that sticks in your mind where thecitizen/client was emotional, (c) How did you handle the situation?, (d) How didyou feel about what happened after it was over?, (e) Does this sort of exchangehappen often?, (f) What does it take for you to put something like this behindyou and face the next case/incident? In most cases, these questions will triggersufficient discussion for the interviewer to probe more deeply and, in the process,136 Journal of Public Affairs Education
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