Emotional dissonance and mental health among home-care workers: A nationwide prospective study of the moderating role of leadership behaviors
OBJECTIVES: Evidence suggests that emotional dissonance, the imbalance between true feelings and those displayed to meet work standards, heightens the risk of mental distress. In nursing occupations, exerting such emotional effort is a part of the job role. Drawing from the job demands–resources mod...
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Nordic Association of Occupational Safety and Health (NOROSH)
2025-01-01
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| Series: | Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health |
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https://www.sjweh.fi/article/4197
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| author | Håkon A Johannessen Morten Birkeland Nielsen Rigmor Harang Knutsen Øivind Skare Jan Olav Christensen |
| author_facet | Håkon A Johannessen Morten Birkeland Nielsen Rigmor Harang Knutsen Øivind Skare Jan Olav Christensen |
| author_sort | Håkon A Johannessen |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | OBJECTIVES: Evidence suggests that emotional dissonance, the imbalance between true feelings and those displayed to meet work standards, heightens the risk of mental distress. In nursing occupations, exerting such emotional effort is a part of the job role. Drawing from the job demands–resources model, high-quality leadership is a resource that may assist employees in coping with stressors. We examined whether quality of leadership mitigated the potential adverse impact of emotional dissonance on mental health. METHODS: In 2019, 1426 home-care workers from 130 organizational units were surveyed, with follow-ups after 8 and 14 months. Prospective associations between emotional dissonance (the Frankfurt Emotion Work Scales) and mental distress (Hopkins Symptom Checklist, HSCL-5), including interactions between emotional dissonance and leadership behaviors (Nordic Questionnaire for Psychological and Social Factors at Work), were determined using lagged linear mixed models. RESULTS: Emotional dissonance was positively associated with mental distress (adjusted P<0.05), whereas supportive, empowering, and fair leadership were negatively associated with mental distress (adjusted P<0.05). All three investigated sources of leadership behaviors moderated the direct association between emotional dissonance and mental distress (adjusted P<0.05). Emotional dissonance and mental distress were reciprocally related; an increase in either will heighten the level of the other. Leadership behaviors did not moderate the reversed association between emotional dissonance and mental distress (adjusted P>0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Supportive, empowering, and fair leadership buffers the association of emotional dissonance on mental distress. Strategic interventions that enhance the quality of leadership may help prevent mental distress among employees in professions with emotionally demanding tasks. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-33e99b3f0a8446db978f64cd8912eb48 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 0355-3140 1795-990X |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | Nordic Association of Occupational Safety and Health (NOROSH) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health |
| spelling | doaj-art-33e99b3f0a8446db978f64cd8912eb482025-08-20T02:51:15ZengNordic Association of Occupational Safety and Health (NOROSH)Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health0355-31401795-990X2025-01-01511152510.5271/sjweh.41974197Emotional dissonance and mental health among home-care workers: A nationwide prospective study of the moderating role of leadership behaviorsHåkon A Johannessen0Morten Birkeland Nielsen1Rigmor Harang Knutsen2Øivind Skare3Jan Olav Christensen4National Institute of Occupational Health in Norway, Pb 5330 Majorstuen, 0304 Oslo, Norway.National Institute of Occupational Health in Norway, Pb 5330 Majorstuen, 0304 Oslo, Norway.National Institute of Occupational Health in Norway, Pb 5330 Majorstuen, 0304 Oslo, Norway.National Institute of Occupational Health in Norway, Pb 5330 Majorstuen, 0304 Oslo, Norway.National Institute of Occupational Health in Norway, Pb 5330 Majorstuen, 0304 Oslo, Norway.OBJECTIVES: Evidence suggests that emotional dissonance, the imbalance between true feelings and those displayed to meet work standards, heightens the risk of mental distress. In nursing occupations, exerting such emotional effort is a part of the job role. Drawing from the job demands–resources model, high-quality leadership is a resource that may assist employees in coping with stressors. We examined whether quality of leadership mitigated the potential adverse impact of emotional dissonance on mental health. METHODS: In 2019, 1426 home-care workers from 130 organizational units were surveyed, with follow-ups after 8 and 14 months. Prospective associations between emotional dissonance (the Frankfurt Emotion Work Scales) and mental distress (Hopkins Symptom Checklist, HSCL-5), including interactions between emotional dissonance and leadership behaviors (Nordic Questionnaire for Psychological and Social Factors at Work), were determined using lagged linear mixed models. RESULTS: Emotional dissonance was positively associated with mental distress (adjusted P<0.05), whereas supportive, empowering, and fair leadership were negatively associated with mental distress (adjusted P<0.05). All three investigated sources of leadership behaviors moderated the direct association between emotional dissonance and mental distress (adjusted P<0.05). Emotional dissonance and mental distress were reciprocally related; an increase in either will heighten the level of the other. Leadership behaviors did not moderate the reversed association between emotional dissonance and mental distress (adjusted P>0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Supportive, empowering, and fair leadership buffers the association of emotional dissonance on mental distress. Strategic interventions that enhance the quality of leadership may help prevent mental distress among employees in professions with emotionally demanding tasks. https://www.sjweh.fi/article/4197 mental healthstressprospective studyworkjob demandwell-beingemotional demandprospectivecommon mental disorderleadershipemotional dissonancehome-care workeremotion work |
| spellingShingle | Håkon A Johannessen Morten Birkeland Nielsen Rigmor Harang Knutsen Øivind Skare Jan Olav Christensen Emotional dissonance and mental health among home-care workers: A nationwide prospective study of the moderating role of leadership behaviors Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health mental health stress prospective study work job demand well-being emotional demand prospective common mental disorder leadership emotional dissonance home-care worker emotion work |
| title | Emotional dissonance and mental health among home-care workers: A nationwide prospective study of the moderating role of leadership behaviors |
| title_full | Emotional dissonance and mental health among home-care workers: A nationwide prospective study of the moderating role of leadership behaviors |
| title_fullStr | Emotional dissonance and mental health among home-care workers: A nationwide prospective study of the moderating role of leadership behaviors |
| title_full_unstemmed | Emotional dissonance and mental health among home-care workers: A nationwide prospective study of the moderating role of leadership behaviors |
| title_short | Emotional dissonance and mental health among home-care workers: A nationwide prospective study of the moderating role of leadership behaviors |
| title_sort | emotional dissonance and mental health among home care workers a nationwide prospective study of the moderating role of leadership behaviors |
| topic | mental health stress prospective study work job demand well-being emotional demand prospective common mental disorder leadership emotional dissonance home-care worker emotion work |
| url |
https://www.sjweh.fi/article/4197
|
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