Surface Acting Loss Spirals: Getting Unstuck With Recovery Activities

In service work, emotional labor is primarily performed by surface acting (modifying expressions) and deep acting (modifying moods). Deep acting is clearly more effective for performance and less costly to health, raising the question—why do employees use the less effective strategy of surface acting? Conservation of resources theory suggests that when employees lack sufficient energy resources, they are more likely to conserve resources and rely on less effective surface acting, which creates future resource loss (i.e., a loss spiral). We test this spiral prediction, while also integrating the effort-recovery model to propose after-work activities as a means of slowing resource loss spirals. Across two experience sampling studies of full-time service workers, we find support for a resource loss spiral through surface acting in Study 1 and partial support in Study 2. Further, low-effort activities like relaxing after work allowed employees to slow the loss spirals from surface acting in both studies. We conclude that the “poor get poorer” (maintaining surface acting) over time, whereas recovery after work effectively breaks the loss spiral of surface acting. Our study expands theoretical understanding of the resource-based view of emotional labor and practical advice for how to replenish workers' resources over time.