Working with a Mask: How and When Workplace Mask Wearing Decreases Employee Emotional Exhaustion

作者：Yang Bai, Wenxing Liu, Li Guo · 发表于：Management and Organization Review · 年份：2024 · DOI：10.1017/mor.2023.44 · 被引用次数：5 · 研究领域：Emotional Labor in Professions、Emotions and Moral Behavior、Work-Family Balance Challenges

Abstract Despite the salutary effects of mask wearing broadly recognized during the COVID-19 pandemic, little is known about the consequences of wearing masks in the workplace. The current research raises the question of whether and how mask wearing may impact employees' emotional well-being at work. Drawing on emotion regulation theory (e.g., Gross, 1998, 2015), we propose that mask wearing enables employees to adopt more authentic emotional displays, which in turn decreases emotional exhaustion. Furthermore, guided by the social interaction model of emotion regulation (Coté, 2005), we further posit that for employees whose work requires more frequent face-to-face interaction, the positive impact of mask wearing on emotional exhaustion becomes more significant. Across a pilot study and a three-wave field survey, we find support for this hypothesized model. Implications of these findings for future theorizing and research on mask wearing are discussed.