Emotional Labor and its Related Factors in Nurses in the Outpatient Department

Background: This study was designed to identify the degree of emotional labor of nurses in the outpatient department and the factors which affect it (job autonomy, social support, self-esteem, emotional intelligence, affective well-being, and perceived emotion requirement). Methods: The participants included 236 nurses working in outpatient clinics. This study used a scale on emotional labor and its related factors (job autonomy, social support, self-esteem, emotional intelligence, affective well-being, and perceived emotion requirement). Results: Emotional labor was positively correlated with perceived emotional requirement and was negatively correlated with job autonomy and self-esteem. The result of multiple regression analysis conducted to identify related factors of emotional labor showed that self-esteem and perceived emotional requirement were significantly related to and explained 30.9% of emotional labor. Conclusions: Nursing managers and hospital administrators must minimize the emotional labor experienced by outpatient nurses and the negative effects of its related factors, and maximize positive effects through educational training programs. KCI Citation Count: 1