Consequential Influences of Work-Induced Emotions on the Work-Induced Happiness of Frontline Workers in Finance-Oriented Firms
Frontline workers performing client service duties in finance-oriented firms in most sub-Saharan African countries, such as Ghana, are known to be challenged in the conduct of their activities. The challenge is attributed to clients’ continued demand for real-time services from such workers, despite the introduction of technological interventions to offset the situation. This has caused such frontline workers to experience increases in their work-induced emotions with consequential effects on their work-induced happiness. This study, therefore, explored the effect of frontline workers’ work-induced emotions on their worked-induced happiness when providing tellering services to clients. A cross-sectional design and quantitative technique were used. Data were collected from a sample of 280 frontline workers using questionnaire. Based on the analysis, it was found that an increase in the frontline workers’ work-induced emotions, caused by their feelings of strain, burnout, frustration, and hard work, had consequential effect on their work-induced happiness. This consequential effect was also found to be aggravated by the workers’ senses of being stretched beyond limit, being emotionally drained, and being used up by their work activities. It is concluded that frontline workers in finance-oriented firms can provide quality real-time services to clients without increases in their work-induced emotions, but with enhanced work-induced happiness, when the psychological and physiological emotional factors associated with the challenged work activities are understood and remedied. Management of the firms can use such understanding to redesign the activities of their frontline workers and improve the quality of their service delivery interactivity with clients.
[1] M. A. Sanda, and E. Arhin, “Using ATMS as work relievers for Ghanaian bank tellers: the customer behavioral challenge”, J Econom Behav Stud. vol. 3, pp.13-21, 2011.
[2] K. W Chan, and E. W. Wan, “How can stressed employees deliver better customer service: the underlying self-regulation depletion mechanism”, J Marketing. vol. 76, pp. 119-137, 2012.
[3] M. H. Yun, Y. G. Lee, H. J. Eoh, and S.H. Lim, “Results of a survey on the awareness and severity assessment of upper-limb work-related musculoskeletal disorders among female bank tellers in Korea”, Int J Ind Ergonom. vol. 27, no. 5, pp. 347–357, 2001.
[4] D. Zapf, A. Isic, M. Bechtoldt, and P. Blau, “What is typical for call center jobs? job characteristics and service interactions in different call centers”, Eur J Work Organ Psychol. vol. 12, no. 4, pp. 311-340, 2003.
[5] T. M. Glomb, and M. J. Tews, “Emotional labor: a conceptualization and scale development”, J Vocat Behav. vol. 64, no. 1, pp. 1-23, 2004
[6] S. E. Hobfoll, “The influence of culture, community, and the nested-self in the stress process: advancing conservation of resources theory”, Appl Psychol-Int Rev. vol. 50, no. 3, pp. 337-421, 2001
[7] H. Ben-Zur, and D. Yagil, “The relationship between empowerment, aggressive behaviors of customers, coping, and burnout”, Eur J Work Organ Psychol. vol. 14, no. 1, pp. 81-99, 2005.
[8] A. A. Grandey, D. N. Dickter, and H. P. Sin, “The customer is not always right: customer aggression and emotion regulation of service employees”, J Organ Behav. vol. 25, pp. 397-418, 2004.
[9] A. A. Grandey, J. H. Kern, and M. R. Frone, “Verbal abuse from outsiders versus insiders: comparing frequency, impact on emotional exhaustion, and the role of emotional labour”, J Occup Health Psych. vol. 12, no. 1, pp. 63-79, 2007.
[10] W. Evers, W. Tomic, and A. Brouwers, “Aggressive behavior and burnout among staff of homes for the elderly”, Int J Ment Health Nurs. vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 2-9, 2002.
[11] S. Winstanley, and R. Whittington, “Anxiety, burnout and coping styles in general hospital staff exposed to workplace aggression: a cyclical model of burnout and vulnerability to aggression”, Work Stress. Vol. 16, no. 4, pp. 302-315, 2002.
[12] A. Hochschild A. The Managed Heart: Commercialization of Human Feeling. Berkeley, California (CA): University of California Press, 1983.
[13] J. A. Morris, and D. C. Feldman, “Managing emotions in the workplace”, J Manage Issues. vol. 9, no. 3, pp. 257-274, 1997.
[14] G. Kinman, “Emotional labour and strain in front-line service employees: does mode of delivery matter?”, J Manage Psychol. vol. 24, no. 2, pp. 118-135, 2009
[15] A. A. Grandey, “Emotional regulation in the workplace: a new way to conceptualize emotional labor”, J Occup Health Psych. vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 95-110, 2000.
[16] K. Lewig, and M. Dollard, “Emotional dissonance, emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction in call center workers”, Eur J Work Organ Psych. vol. 2, no. 4, pp. 366-392, 2003.
[17] E. B. Faragher, M. Cass, and C. L. Cooper, “The relationship between job satisfaction and health: a meta-analysis”, Occup Environ Med. vol. 62, no. 2, pp. 105-112, 2005.
[18] O. M. Karatepe, and M. Tekinkus, “The effects of work-family conflict, emotional exhaustion, and intrinsic motivation on job outcomes of front-line employees”, Int J Bank Market. vol. 24, no. 3, pp. 173-193, 2006.
[19] R. L. Miller, and J. D. Brewer, The A-Z of Social Research: A Dictionary of Key Social Science Research Concepts, London: Sage, 2003.
[20] C. Maslach, S. E. Jackson, “The measurement of experienced burnout”, J Occup Behav. vol. 2, pp. 99-113, 1981.
[21] L. J. Labrague, P. D. McEnroe, M. C. Leocadio, P. Van Bogaert, K. Tsaras. Perceptions of organizational support and its impact on nurses’ job outcomes. Nurs Forum. vol. 53, no. 3, pp. 339-347, 2018.
[22] C. Schriesheim, and A. S. Tsui, “Development and validation of a short satisfaction instrument for use in survey feedback interventions. Paper presented at the Western Academy of Management meeting. Phoenix, Arizona: 1980.
[23] R. E. Schumacker, and R. G. Lomax, A Beginner’s Guide to Structural Equation Modeling. Mahwah, New Jersey (NJ): Lawrence Erlbaum, 2004.
[24] A. Field, Discovering Statistics Using SPSS. London: Sage, 2005.
[1] M. A. Sanda, and E. Arhin, “Using ATMS as work relievers for Ghanaian bank tellers: the customer behavioral challenge”, J Econom Behav Stud. vol. 3, pp.13-21, 2011.
[2] K. W Chan, and E. W. Wan, “How can stressed employees deliver better customer service: the underlying self-regulation depletion mechanism”, J Marketing. vol. 76, pp. 119-137, 2012.
[3] M. H. Yun, Y. G. Lee, H. J. Eoh, and S.H. Lim, “Results of a survey on the awareness and severity assessment of upper-limb work-related musculoskeletal disorders among female bank tellers in Korea”, Int J Ind Ergonom. vol. 27, no. 5, pp. 347–357, 2001.
[4] D. Zapf, A. Isic, M. Bechtoldt, and P. Blau, “What is typical for call center jobs? job characteristics and service interactions in different call centers”, Eur J Work Organ Psychol. vol. 12, no. 4, pp. 311-340, 2003.
[5] T. M. Glomb, and M. J. Tews, “Emotional labor: a conceptualization and scale development”, J Vocat Behav. vol. 64, no. 1, pp. 1-23, 2004
[6] S. E. Hobfoll, “The influence of culture, community, and the nested-self in the stress process: advancing conservation of resources theory”, Appl Psychol-Int Rev. vol. 50, no. 3, pp. 337-421, 2001
[7] H. Ben-Zur, and D. Yagil, “The relationship between empowerment, aggressive behaviors of customers, coping, and burnout”, Eur J Work Organ Psychol. vol. 14, no. 1, pp. 81-99, 2005.
[8] A. A. Grandey, D. N. Dickter, and H. P. Sin, “The customer is not always right: customer aggression and emotion regulation of service employees”, J Organ Behav. vol. 25, pp. 397-418, 2004.
[9] A. A. Grandey, J. H. Kern, and M. R. Frone, “Verbal abuse from outsiders versus insiders: comparing frequency, impact on emotional exhaustion, and the role of emotional labour”, J Occup Health Psych. vol. 12, no. 1, pp. 63-79, 2007.
[10] W. Evers, W. Tomic, and A. Brouwers, “Aggressive behavior and burnout among staff of homes for the elderly”, Int J Ment Health Nurs. vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 2-9, 2002.
[11] S. Winstanley, and R. Whittington, “Anxiety, burnout and coping styles in general hospital staff exposed to workplace aggression: a cyclical model of burnout and vulnerability to aggression”, Work Stress. Vol. 16, no. 4, pp. 302-315, 2002.
[12] A. Hochschild A. The Managed Heart: Commercialization of Human Feeling. Berkeley, California (CA): University of California Press, 1983.
[13] J. A. Morris, and D. C. Feldman, “Managing emotions in the workplace”, J Manage Issues. vol. 9, no. 3, pp. 257-274, 1997.
[14] G. Kinman, “Emotional labour and strain in front-line service employees: does mode of delivery matter?”, J Manage Psychol. vol. 24, no. 2, pp. 118-135, 2009
[15] A. A. Grandey, “Emotional regulation in the workplace: a new way to conceptualize emotional labor”, J Occup Health Psych. vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 95-110, 2000.
[16] K. Lewig, and M. Dollard, “Emotional dissonance, emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction in call center workers”, Eur J Work Organ Psych. vol. 2, no. 4, pp. 366-392, 2003.
[17] E. B. Faragher, M. Cass, and C. L. Cooper, “The relationship between job satisfaction and health: a meta-analysis”, Occup Environ Med. vol. 62, no. 2, pp. 105-112, 2005.
[18] O. M. Karatepe, and M. Tekinkus, “The effects of work-family conflict, emotional exhaustion, and intrinsic motivation on job outcomes of front-line employees”, Int J Bank Market. vol. 24, no. 3, pp. 173-193, 2006.
[19] R. L. Miller, and J. D. Brewer, The A-Z of Social Research: A Dictionary of Key Social Science Research Concepts, London: Sage, 2003.
[20] C. Maslach, S. E. Jackson, “The measurement of experienced burnout”, J Occup Behav. vol. 2, pp. 99-113, 1981.
[21] L. J. Labrague, P. D. McEnroe, M. C. Leocadio, P. Van Bogaert, K. Tsaras. Perceptions of organizational support and its impact on nurses’ job outcomes. Nurs Forum. vol. 53, no. 3, pp. 339-347, 2018.
[22] C. Schriesheim, and A. S. Tsui, “Development and validation of a short satisfaction instrument for use in survey feedback interventions. Paper presented at the Western Academy of Management meeting. Phoenix, Arizona: 1980.
[23] R. E. Schumacker, and R. G. Lomax, A Beginner’s Guide to Structural Equation Modeling. Mahwah, New Jersey (NJ): Lawrence Erlbaum, 2004.
[24] A. Field, Discovering Statistics Using SPSS. London: Sage, 2005.
@article{"International Journal of Business, Human and Social Sciences:80130", author = "Mohammed-Aminu Sanda and Emmanuel K. Mawuena", title = "Consequential Influences of Work-Induced Emotions on the Work-Induced Happiness of Frontline Workers in Finance-Oriented Firms", abstract = "Frontline workers performing client service duties in finance-oriented firms in most sub-Saharan African countries, such as Ghana, are known to be challenged in the conduct of their activities. The challenge is attributed to clients’ continued demand for real-time services from such workers, despite the introduction of technological interventions to offset the situation. This has caused such frontline workers to experience increases in their work-induced emotions with consequential effects on their work-induced happiness. This study, therefore, explored the effect of frontline workers’ work-induced emotions on their worked-induced happiness when providing tellering services to clients. A cross-sectional design and quantitative technique were used. Data were collected from a sample of 280 frontline workers using questionnaire. Based on the analysis, it was found that an increase in the frontline workers’ work-induced emotions, caused by their feelings of strain, burnout, frustration, and hard work, had consequential effect on their work-induced happiness. This consequential effect was also found to be aggravated by the workers’ senses of being stretched beyond limit, being emotionally drained, and being used up by their work activities. It is concluded that frontline workers in finance-oriented firms can provide quality real-time services to clients without increases in their work-induced emotions, but with enhanced work-induced happiness, when the psychological and physiological emotional factors associated with the challenged work activities are understood and remedied. Management of the firms can use such understanding to redesign the activities of their frontline workers and improve the quality of their service delivery interactivity with clients.
", keywords = "Client-service activity, finance industrial sector, frontline workers, work-induced emotion, work-induced happiness. ", volume = "15", number = "1", pages = "29-7", }
