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Service-oriented and force-oriented emotion regulation in police officers

Description: Research on managing emotions as part of one's job (emotional labor) primarily focuses on emotional regulation strategies for displaying positive emotions. However, police work imposes the need for negative emotional expression for law enforcement (force-oriented duties) in addition to positive emotional expression for community service (service-oriented duties). We tested an adaptation of the predominant two-factor model of emotion regulation strategies (deep acting versus surface acting) that differentiated between positive and negative emotional expression. Factor analyses revealed that a three-factor structure (surface acting, service-oriented deep acting, and force-oriented deep acting) provided the best fit. Hierarchical regression showed that only surface acting predicted increased emotional exhaustion. Force-oriented deep acting (but not service-oriented deep acting) was the only predictor of job involvement.

Suggested Citation:
Barber, L. K., Grawitch, M. J., & Trares, S. T. (2009). Service-oriented and force-oriented emotion regulation in police officers [Electronic Version]. Applied Psychology in Criminal Justice, 5(2), 182-202.

Keywords: emotional labor, surface acting, deep acting, emotional exhaustion, job involvement

Date: Sep 23, 2009 | File Size: 358.85 Kb | Downloads: 2065

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