Emotions - Part 1

Summary

This lecture on Organizational Behaviour focuses on emotions, particularly in the workplace. It explores the nature of emotions, their universality, and how they can be managed. Emotions like anger, stress, and positive emotions such as happiness are discussed, alongside their contagious effects on others. The concept of emotional labor, where individuals may need to fake emotions for professional reasons, is introduced. The lecture highlights the importance of emotional intelligence, mood congruence, and how emotions affect job performance, workplace dynamics, and the balance between work and personal life.

Takeaways

• 😀 Emotions are an inherent part of human life and are expressed from birth, even before language is learned.
• 🌐 Emotions are universal across cultures, though their expressions may vary.
• 😡 Emotions such as anger and stress are particularly important to understand in a workplace context.
• 🤔 Emotions can be both positive and negative, and a mix of both is necessary for a fulfilling life experience.
• 📈 Emotional contagion can influence the mood of others in the workplace, similar to how a cold can spread.
• 💼 Managing emotions is a skill that can be developed over time and is often referred to as emotional intelligence.
• 🏆 Positive emotions can improve job performance and create a more positive outlook towards work experiences.
• 🔄 Mood congruence suggests that positive moods lead to remembering positive things and vice versa for negative moods.
• 🌀 Emotions can have a spillover effect from work to family life and vice versa, impacting overall well-being.
• 🎭 Emotional labor, especially in service jobs, may require individuals to display certain emotions, whether genuinely felt or not.
• 🤝 Emotional attachment to the workplace can lead to higher commitment and job satisfaction.

Q & A

What are emotions according to the lecture?

Emotions are expressions of our inner feelings. They are in-born and universal, though the way emotions are managed and expressed can be socially learned. Emotions are also described as our first language, evident even in infants.

How do emotions differ from moods?

Emotions are typically targeted toward specific objects or people, whereas moods are more generalized, unfocused feelings that serve as a background to daily experiences. Moods can be triggered by internal or external factors, but often exist without a specific cause.

What is emotional contagion, and how does it impact the workplace?

Emotional contagion refers to the spread of emotions from one person to another, similar to how a cold spreads. In the workplace, if a few people display negative emotions, it can influence others to feel the same. Positive emotions can also spread, fostering a more cheerful environment.

What is the significance of emotional intelligence in the workplace?

Emotional intelligence refers to the ability to manage, control, and channel emotions positively. This skill involves handling emotions in a way that benefits both personal well-being and workplace relationships, such as channeling aggression or resentment constructively.

What is the difference between self-conscious emotions and social emotions?

Self-conscious emotions, such as shame and guilt, are internally targeted and stem from one's own behavior or inadequacies. Social emotions, such as pity and envy, are externally targeted and are focused on other people or external objects.

How does 'mood congruence' affect job performance?

Mood congruence refers to the tendency to remember positive things when in a positive mood and negative things when in a negative mood. A positive mood at work helps employees see situations optimistically and improves performance, while a negative mood can reinforce negative memories and outlooks.

What is emotional labor, and which professions require it?

Emotional labor involves managing and sometimes faking emotions in the workplace to meet job expectations. It is especially common in service jobs like hospitality and healthcare, where workers are often required to display positive emotions regardless of how they feel.

What is the difference between 'surface acting' and 'deep acting' in emotional labor?

Surface acting involves pretending to feel emotions that you do not genuinely experience, while deep acting involves trying to actually feel the required emotions. Surface acting can create emotional dissonance, where the emotions shown are different from what is felt internally.

How can emotions spill over between work and family life?

Emotions from work can affect one's emotions at home and vice versa. Positive emotions from work can lead to positive interactions at home, and negative emotions can lead to negative spillover. Conversely, negative emotions at home can impact work behavior, creating a cyclical effect.

What is emotional attachment in the workplace, and how does it affect employee behavior?

Emotional attachment occurs when employees feel connected to their workplace due to positive experiences and emotions. This leads to higher job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Negative emotional attachment, on the other hand, can cause employees to disengage or leave the organization.

Outlines

00:00

😊 Introduction to Emotions in Organizational Behaviour

This paragraph introduces the topic of emotions in the workplace as part of a lecture on Organizational Behaviour. It emphasizes the significance of emotions in human life, noting how they add complexity and interest. Emotions, both positive and negative, are essential to the human experience. The paragraph explains that emotions are universal, inborn, and not learned from society, although how we manage and express them is socially influenced. It also highlights that emotions are often targeted towards objects or individuals, but can also be directed at oneself.

05:00

😶 Contagion of Emotions in the Workplace

The second paragraph focuses on how emotions can be contagious, especially in the workplace. It explains that negative emotions can spread among colleagues, causing a ripple effect, while positive emotions can uplift the environment. The ability to manage and control emotions is a skill, referred to as emotional intelligence. Some people possess this skill more naturally, while others develop it over time. Additionally, the paragraph discusses the concept of emotions that are self-directed, such as shame and guilt, as well as social emotions like envy and pity.

10:03

🤔 Differentiating Between Emotions, Moods, and Temperament

This section distinguishes between emotions, moods, and temperament. While emotions are often focused on an object or person, moods are more generalized and unfocused. Moods are typically mild and can stem from biological or hormonal factors. The paragraph also explains that mood plays a significant role in workplace performance, with positive moods enhancing productivity. Mood congruence, where people in good moods recall positive experiences and those in bad moods focus on negative experiences, is introduced. The concept of temperament is defined as a person’s predisposition toward certain emotional states, such as being cheerful or irritable.

15:08

😌 Emotional Spillover and Emotional Labor in the Workplace

This paragraph discusses emotional spillover between work and family life. Positive or negative emotions from one sphere can influence the other. Emotional labor, the effort of managing emotions at work, especially in service jobs, is explained in detail. Certain jobs require employees to show specific emotions regardless of how they truly feel, leading to potential stress. The paragraph emphasizes the challenge of balancing emotional authenticity with the demands of the job. Emotional dissonance, where there’s a conflict between felt emotions and displayed emotions, is a significant challenge in such roles.

20:13

🙂 Emotional Attachment to the Workplace

The final paragraph covers emotional attachment to the workplace, where employees who experience positive emotions in their work environment are more likely to stay committed and speak positively about the organization. Conversely, negative emotions can lead to detachment and poor performance. Emotional labor, particularly in jobs requiring high levels of emotional regulation, can lead to burnout if not managed properly. The paragraph closes with a brief mention of how employees can wear an emotional ‘mask’ at work, hiding their true feelings to meet job demands.

Keywords

💡Emotions

Emotions are described as expressions of inner feelings and are a fundamental aspect of human life, influencing both personal and workplace interactions. In the video, emotions are explored as both positive and negative, and their role in making life interesting. They are universal, inborn, and socially managed as people grow older.

💡Emotional contagion

Emotional contagion refers to the phenomenon where emotions spread from one person to another, similar to catching a cold. In the workplace, this concept is significant because the emotions of a few individuals can influence the overall mood of others. Positive emotions can uplift a team, while negative emotions can create a toxic environment.

💡Emotional intelligence

Emotional intelligence is the ability to manage and channel emotions in a positive way. This skill involves understanding how to control emotions like anger or stress, and how to express negative emotions appropriately. The video emphasizes that emotional intelligence is a learned skill, crucial for managing both personal and workplace dynamics.

💡Self-conscious emotions

These are emotions directed towards one's own self, such as shame, guilt, and pride. They arise from internal reflections and are not typically targeted toward external objects or people. For example, shame can stem from feeling inadequate in a social context, while pride may arise from personal achievement.

💡Mood

Mood is described as a generalized, unfocused feeling that serves as a backdrop to daily experiences. Unlike emotions, moods do not have specific triggers and can be influenced by biological or hormonal factors. In the workplace, positive moods can enhance performance, while negative moods can lead to decreased morale.

💡Mood congruence

Mood congruence is the idea that people tend to remember events and experiences that align with their current mood. For example, a person in a positive mood is more likely to recall positive memories, while someone in a negative mood may dwell on negative past experiences. This concept is important in workplace performance and attitude.

💡Temperament

Temperament refers to a person's predisposition towards certain emotions, such as being generally cheerful or irritable. It is a relatively stable trait that influences how individuals experience emotions over time. In the workplace, understanding an employee's temperament can help in managing their reactions to stress or conflict.

💡Work-family spillover

Work-family spillover refers to the transfer of emotions and behaviors between work and home environments. Positive experiences at work can enhance family life, and vice versa, while negative emotions in one domain can negatively impact the other. The video highlights the importance of managing this spillover to maintain balance and well-being.

💡Emotional labor

Emotional labor is the effort required to manage and display certain emotions in professional settings, particularly in jobs that involve customer service or caregiving. Workers may either genuinely feel these emotions or fake them to meet job expectations. The video explains that this emotional dissonance can be exhausting, leading to burnout.

💡Emotional dissonance

Emotional dissonance occurs when there is a mismatch between how a person feels and the emotions they are expected to display, especially in professional roles requiring emotional labor. This discrepancy can lead to stress and health problems, as explained in the context of service jobs like hospitality and healthcare, where employees often have to mask their true emotions.

Highlights

Introduction to emotions and their significance in organizational behavior.

Emotions are inherent and in-born, not learned, although the management of emotions is learned socially.

Basic emotions, like happiness and sadness, are universal, although their expression may differ culturally.

Emotions can be contagious, influencing the mood and emotional state of others, especially in the workplace.

Some people are better at managing emotions, leading to the concept of emotional intelligence.

Emotions can be self-targeted (like shame and guilt) or directed at others (like envy and pity).

Mood is a more general feeling, often unfocused, and not necessarily tied to specific objects or events.

Positive emotions at work can enhance job performance, as people tend to remember and focus on positive things.

Negative moods can create a cycle of negative thoughts, requiring conscious effort to break that cycle.

Temperament refers to a person’s predisposition to certain emotional states, like being generally cheerful or irritable.

Workplace emotions are significant due to their spillover effect, influencing both work and personal life.

Emotional labor is the requirement to show certain emotions in jobs, particularly in service industries, even if they are not genuinely felt.

Faking emotions at work can cause emotional dissonance, leading to burnout, especially in high-stress jobs like healthcare and counseling.

Emotional attachment to the workplace can increase commitment and loyalty if the work environment is positive.

Negative emotional experiences at work can lead to disengagement, low morale, or even turnover.

Transcripts

Warm welcome to this lecture series on Organizational Behaviour.

We are on the 6th chapter which is on Emotions.

So, this is going to be the broad outline of the lecture.

We will try to understand what is meant by emotion, and we will also look at some of

the important emotions at workplace; especially, anger, and stress.

We will also talk about how to manage anger and stress.

Humans show varied kinds of emotions in the day today interactions with others and also

within themselves.

Emotions makes our life interesting.

Think about the life without emotions, and our emotions have both negative emotions and

also positive emotions or emotions which are desirable and emotions which are not desirable.

In a very philosophical sense, when we have emotions which are only positive or which

are only desirable life loses its, it becomes less interesting.

When we have emotions of different types, at different points in time it is like up

and you know low in in our life.

So, only when you have ups and lows in our life it becomes interesting.

So, what are emotions?

Emotions like I said inherent part of our human life.

In fact, it is not just humans, but also many animals show emotions.

So, what are emotions?

Emotions are expression of our inner feelings in a very simple term.

And they are also our first language.

So, children even before they start communicating using language, they use emotions.

If you see even children with or infants which are born without you know sensory perception

like visual perception, or auditory perception, they show emotions, they know how to cry,

they know how to laugh, how to smile, they know they also become sad.

So, in that case emotions are not learnt from the society.

So, emotions are in-born.

But the way we show emotions or the way we manage our emotions change when we grow.

So, how we manage emotions?

It is socially learnt, but emotions per se are not learnt, they are in-born.

And emotions are universal.

So, what I meant by universal is certain emotions or certain basic emotions are found among

people throughout the world.

Emotional expressions, the way we show emotions may change from culture to culture, but the

idea of emotion or happiness or sadness is common for everyone in the world.

Like I said culture can influence the way we express emotions, but it does not mean

that there will be cultural differences in emotions.

And most of the times emotions have an object.

So, what I mean to say is like attitudes, most of the times emotions are targeted towards

an object.

But there are also emotions which are targeted towards our own selves.

We will talk about that in the later slide.

Emotions are also contagious.

So, similar to cold or common cold, if somebody has cold in a room, everybody gets cold, is

not it.

Most of us in the same room gets cold.

Similarly, emotions also are very powerful.

So, if somebody shows happiness near you, you also catch that happens.

If somebody is sad around you, you also become sad, even though there is no reason for you

to become sad or happy, when people show emotions around you some kind of emotions, we also

acquire those emotions.

So, that is where emotions in workplace play a very important role because people around

you in work, when they show different emotions you also become happy or sad.

And, it is like common cold, it spreads; everybody you know if there are two three people who

are showing negative emotions consistently, many people around them will also become like

that, they are also show the same kind of emotions.

So, having happy people at work makes everyone happy.

Similarly, having people who are sad or aggressive, may also influence people around them in the

same way, ok.

So, like I said we all have emotions, but some people are better in managing their emotions,

they are better in terms of how to show emotions, how to control emotions, how to channelize

their emotions in a positive way.

For example, aggression, how to channelize the aggression in a positive way, how to show

resentment; negative emotions to others in a right way, and how to control certain emotions.

So, these are certain skills, not many people have.

And, these skills are learnt over a period of time.

So, they are also called as emotional intelligence or emotion management skills, ok.

Like I said the earlier most emotions are targeted towards certain objects or certain

people or certain incidents.

There can also be in emotions which are targeted towards oneself.

So, the target is your own self, which are which are self-conscious emotions.

There are certain emotions which are targeted or focused towards outside objects and outside

people.

So, the internally targeted emotions or the emotions which stem from within or for example,

shame.

Shame means you feel inadequate or you feel you something you have done you feel you know

you have done which is not appropriate in the social situations ok, so that is shame.

Guilt is, you feel you do not have enough capacity or you have done something wrong,

you know you feel bad about it.

So, these are the positive side of it is pride you feel you know, you have you are better

than others, so you feel proud.

Social emotions like I said targeted towards others outside are pity, you know you are

you feel pity about someone.

Envy, envy means somebody has something with them which you do not have or they have something

which you desire for, so which is, so you get jealousy.

So, these emotions are targeted towards others, ok.

There is a related term compared to emotion which is mood.

Mood is not, compared to emotions mood is not targeted towards any object, internal

or external.

It is an unfocused or a very general feeling which exists in our day today experiences.

For example, few days we feel low, few days we feel energetic, few days we feel irritable,

ok.

So, these are mood.

So, these are unfocused relatively mild feeling that exists as a background to our daily experience.

You may not even know why it is like that or sometimes it can be something which was

triggered which you are not aware of, and most of the times these are you know our biological,

hormonal or you know biochemical reactions which which many a times are not because of

any specific reason.

Positive emotions especially play a very important role in job performance.

When your mood is good, when somebody's mood is good in the workplace, they tend to be

very cheerful and they have also work better.

And their performance is better not necessarily you know their skills improve, but the way

they look at problems will be in a positive way, so they will have a positive outlook

towards the experiences or with people around them.

So, that leads to better performance.

And, having a positive mood or a positive emotion is important in workplace because

there is something called mood congruence.

Mood congruence means when people are in a positive mood, they tend to remember positive

things.

Similarly, when they have a negative mood or negative emotion, they tend to remember

negative things.

So, why it is important?

So, when you are a positive mood like I said everything looks positive around you, you

know you feel happy about your life.

Similarly, you know you have negative mood everything seems to be gloomy; everything

seems to be grey and you feel self-pity, you know you feel your life has been miserable,

ok.

So, it reinforces that cycle.

So, if you have bad mood, it is important to break that bad mood or you have to break

that cycle of you know your mood feeding into your memory of previous experiences and that

feeding into your mood and also the way you look at things.

So, if you have to break that cycle, you need to ask yourself or you need to you know challenge

your mood or you have to take some effort to become positive.

There is another term which is called as temperament.

Temperament is a kind of an internal quality or like a personality quality where some people

are always positive and some people are always negative.

Some people are inherently you know very cheerful in nature, some people are irritable in nature

you know.

There is always be irritable towards others, some on the other hand some people are always

cheerful and happy in nature.

So, this emotional, you know the state of emotion which you have most of the times is

called temperament or your predisposition towards being happy or being irritable is

called temperament, ok.

Why emotions play an important role in workplace?

One we already seen; emotion is emotions are contagious.

So, if you have negative people or people who with negative emotions in the workplace

most people around them also are affected by it and many a times, they also acquire

those kind of negative emotions.

So, that is one.

We call it emotional contagion.

Two, emotions have a spillover effect especially in a work family context.

So, when people are happy at work, they will also carry that happiness and show it in their

family, and other way around also, when people are happy at with family, if they are happy

with people around them in their family or if they are happy about themselves in the

family they will show happiness in work also.

Other way around, you know if people are sad or angry in their workplace, they go and show

it in their families.

And similarly, if they are angry or upset in the workplace or sorry in the family, they

will have their work behavior also gets affected.

So, how to break this?

So, this spillover effect we can use it positively also.

So, there is positive spillover, negative spillover.

So, let us say if there is positive spillover it is good, but what if there is negative

spillover.

You know some are undergoing very negative emotions in their family, you know there is

some something which is bad happened in their family, some unfortunate event in the family,

so that person is depressed.

So, how to overcome it?

One way to overcome it is to be successful in work, to try to take energy from your success

in work.

So, what I am trying to say is when one sphere of your life is making you feel bad which

leads to negative emotions, to overcome it you need to you can use success or positive

energy from the other place, the other sphere of your life, ok.

So, that is that is a importance of work family spillover effect .

There is another important issue about emotions in workplace which is emotional labor.

So, there are certain jobs which require showing a certain kind of emotions.

Even if you feel or even if you feel them naturally or you do not feel them naturally

it becomes important in workplace to show certain emotions.

It is true for most jobs, but there are specific jobs which require more amount of emotional

labor.

For example, employees who are working in hospitality industry.

Hospitality means hotel, tourism, people like reception who are working in the reception

jobs or people who handle common public or you know people with special needs.

So, these kind of job; especially, mostly they are service jobs.

So, these jobs require high levels of, high demand on these employees to show emotional

labor . The problem with emotional labor is you have

to pretend, ok.

So, there are two ways you can show emotional labor, one you can naturally feel those emotions

and show them.

You know for example, if you are if you are in hotel industry, you are receptionist or

you are a you know if you are a person who is working in a hotel, five star hotel or

you are an air steward you know people who are working in the aero plane, they show lot

of their smile and they show cheer fullness.

One option is you can genuinely show those emotions.

You can feel happy about your job.

You can feel cheer full about meeting new people, going to different places.

So, you can show those positive emotions.

At the same time, you can also do it artificially.

You know you do not have to really feel those emotions, but more like a mask.

You know you can use that mask.

You you may not be genuinely feeling happy, but because it is required in a job you can

pretend to show happiness.

There are two ways, one naturally showing in, two, you can pretend as if you are you

are feeling happy.

There are advantages and disadvantages in both.

The advantage of showing it naturally is there is less energy involved in it you are not

like pretending you do not need to put an effort to do it.

But the problem is certain jobs you need to show negative emotions, not negative emotions,

you cannot laugh.

For example, if you are a doctor, ok, there is a negative news to be conveyed.

Personally, you are undergoing something which is happy in your life, but you cannot show

it in your work place and to your you know to your patience and the relatives when they

are sad.

You should show empathy, ok.

Empathy means putting yourself in their shoes, you should.

So, when you genuinely feel sad for others that will affect your health.

Feeling happy is good.

You know genuinely feeling happy in workplace is ok, but genuinely feeling sad, if your

work requires, showing negative emotions, if you naturally feel them, if you get involved

them deeply it may affect your health.

In fact, there are studies which show that people like psychological counselors doctors

they get into burnout.

Burnout means they encounter these kind of negative emotions around them.

When they when they also are immersed into that negative emotions, naturally you know

feeling those emotions because others are also showing those emotions around them they

become burnt out.

Burnt out means they feel tired they they feel ill and all those stuff.

The advantage of faking or you know pretending to be happy or sad in your workplace is you

are not, this is like wearing a mask.

When you go out of your work, when you go back home, you remove that mask and keep it

somewhere.

Next day when you come you wear it.

It is not personally affecting you.

But the problem with wearing a mask is you need to put some effort; you know you need

to act.

You need to show them as if you are feeling it, and people may understand your faking

you know especially in hospitality industry in hotel, tourism industries, people know

whether you are genuinely showing happiness or cheerful or whether you are faking your

cheerfulness.

So, that will affect the way they rate you.

So, if you see many of the people who are working in hospitality industry when they

get positive feedback from their customers, when they feel this person is genuinely showing

concern and happiness.

These are with this person is like pretending for acting to do that, ok.

So, it is good to show genuine emotions in work place, but it has a certain level of

impact on you, ok.

So, that is what we call emotional dissonance.

So, you are feeling certain thing, but you are demanded to show certain thing.

So, that requires lot of burden on the employee.

Another important aspect of emotions in workplace is emotional attachment in workplace, which

means when people feel or when people think their workplace is a happy place to work.

You know they feel the work they are doing and the environment they are working people

around them are you know making them feel good about themselves, and also making them

feel happy about themselves, they get attached to their workplace, they feel emotionally

attached which means you know leaving that place makes them sad.

It can be other way around also.

If the workplace and the people around them in the workplace makes them feel upset or

low or irritable, then they get negative emotions towards their work.

So, you know this kind of a negative emotions will make them quit the organization soon

or do certain things which will harm the organizations reputation or you know performance.

It can be other way around, if people are happy about their work and work place because

they think the workplace is a happy place to work they will be committed to their work,

and the organization, they will not leave the organization even if there are pressure

for them to leave.

Similarly, there will say good things about their work when they go out.

This is like committed employees, ok.

So, emotional labor, like I said sometimes can be wearing a mask without actually showing

it, ok.

So, I will stop here.

We will meet in the next lecture.

We will talk about different types of emotions, more specifically the negative emotions and

how to manage them.

Till then take care.

See you in the next class.