arbiter
JournalsPricingAccount

Emotional Toll of Surface Acting on Workplace Interactions in Service Settings: Does Turnover Intention Fan the Flame?

Bilal Ahmad

South Asian Journal of Human Resources Management2025https://doi.org/10.1177/23220937251379107article
AJG 1ABDC C
Weight
0.50

What the paper says

Flight attendants often feign emotions (surface acting) to meet role expectations, which is linked to increased exhaustion. This reduces their involvement in workplace social exchanges (Leader–Member Exchange (LMX), Team–Member Exchange (TMX)). These patterns appear more pronounced among those with higher turnover intentions. The study explored these dynamics using Cognitive Dissonance, Conservation of Resources and Social Exchange theories, testing understudied relationships and the connection between quitting intentions and workplace social dynamics. Using non-probability sampling, survey data from 200 flight attendants of five airlines registered in Pakistan were analysed, revealing a 14.8% higher level of exhaustion among those who reported greater use of surface acting. This exhaustion was linked to reduced LMX (75.1%) and TMX (47.7%). The analysis also suggested emotional exhaustion’s possible mediating role in both LMX and TMX pathways, with noteworthy moderated-mediation effects in the model emphasising the importance of supporting employee well-being and addressing turnover intentions.

Open paper page →

Cite this paper

https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1177/23220937251379107

Or copy a formatted citation

@article{bilal2025,
  title        = {{Emotional Toll of Surface Acting on Workplace Interactions in Service Settings: Does Turnover Intention Fan the Flame?}},
  author       = {Bilal Ahmad},
  journal      = {South Asian Journal of Human Resources Management},
  year         = {2025},
  doi          = {https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1177/23220937251379107},
}

Paste directly into BibTeX, Zotero, or your reference manager.

Flag this paper

Emotional Toll of Surface Acting on Workplace Interactions in Service Settings: Does Turnover Intention Fan the Flame?

Flags are reviewed by the Arbiter methodology team within 5 business days.

Evidence weight

0.50

Balanced mode · F 0.40 / M 0.15 / V 0.05 / R 0.40

F · citation impact0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20
M · momentum0.50 × 0.15 = 0.07
V · venue signal0.50 × 0.05 = 0.03
R · text relevance †0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20

† Text relevance is estimated at 0.50 on the detail page — for your query’s actual relevance score, open this paper from a search result.