Article
Examining Emotional Labor in COVID-19 through the Lens of
Self-Efficacy
Lixia Yao
1
and Jie Gao
2,
*
Citation: Yao, L.; Gao, J. Examining
Emotional Labor in COVID-19
through the Lens of Self-Efficacy.
Sustainability 2021, 13, 13674. https://
doi.org/10.3390/su132413674
Academic Editor: Adam Smoli´nski
Received: 28 October 2021
Accepted: 8 December 2021
Published: 10 December 2021
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1
School of Business and Administration, Zhejiang Gongshang University, Hangzhou 310018, China;
yaolixia@zjgsu.edu.cn
2
Department of Hospitality, Tourism and Event Management, Lucas College and Graduate School of Business,
San Jose State University, San Jose, CA 95192, USA
* Correspondence: jie.gao@sjsu.edu
Abstract:
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has dealt a significant blow to the restaurant industry,
with many restaurants suspending operations or closing altogether. This study was aimed to
investigate the effects of emotional labor on employees’ well-being and the mediating role of self-
efficacy in the context of chain restaurants. Data were collected in 2020 through an online survey
in China, and results revealed that emotional labor had a significant impact on well-being that was
measured in life and job satisfaction. Self-efficacy not only had a significant positive impact on
employees’ job- and life-related well-being but also played a fully mediating role between deep
acting and life satisfaction, with a partial mediating role between deep acting and job satisfaction.
Job-related well-being also played a fully mediating role between deep acting and life satisfaction,
with a partial mediating role between deep acting and job satisfaction. It is important for restaurant
employees to develop deep acting skills and improve self-efficacy and job satisfaction Restaurant
managers must establish a healthy working environment by providing better job support and creating
a more relaxed working atmosphere.
Keywords: COVID-19; surface acting; deep acting; self-efficacy; job satisfaction; life satisfaction
1. Introduction
The world has been rocked by the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pan-
demic, which continues to wreak havoc worldwide. This ongoing global health crisis
and the commensurate worldwide efforts to contain the virus’ transmission by “flattening
the curve” has dealt a huge blow to the restaurant industry, wherein a large number of
restaurants have suspended services or even permanently closed. In 2020, the restaurant
market was one of the most severely damaged industries. For example, the revenue of
China’s restaurant industry in 2020 was 6117 billion dollars, down 16.6% from the previous
year. In China, nearly all restaurants closed their offline marketing services during this
pandemic, and until now, in-store customers have comprised far fewer numbers than usual.
Consequently, restaurant employees are experiencing several negative emotions, such as
worries about their job security and future. Interestingly, service employees are commonly
referred to as “emotional labor”, because they frequently endure negative experiences
with rude customers. Nonetheless, they are forced to comply with emotional expression
regulations established by service-oriented organizations [
1
]. In this customer-oriented
service environment, organizations must focus on the quality of service, particularly that of
client–provider interactions. COVID-19 has greatly impacted the restaurant industry. Due
to fears of losing their salaries and jobs and even being infected with COVID-19, restaurants’
employees have been under much psychological pressure during the pandemic, which may
be hurting their well-being. As per social cognitive theory (SCT), self-efficacy is a crucial
and proximal predictor of behavior. Studies have shown that self-efficacy is an important
source of happiness, and it has a strong relationship with well-being [
2
]. Self-efficacy has a
Sustainability 2021, 13, 13674. https://doi.org/10.3390/su132413674 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/sustainability
