University Libraries Promotion and Tenure Recognition

In our work lives, we often cannot show how we truly feel.  We exaggerate our enthusiasm with clients or students, or maybe hide our boredom and irritation with coworkers. For the past 15 years I've been exploring how such emotional labor affects the actor's personal and work outcomes. This book is important to me because it represents both my own growth as a scholar and the growth in this field.  When I received tenure, the book that was most influential was Hochschild's (1983) book introducing emotional labor as a concept, The Managed Heart.  Since that time, I've continued to test the assumptions of her work and connect with others who are interested in the topic.  This book represents a labor of love, in that I'm passionate about understanding how managing emotions at work (and home) affects us, and because many of my closest friends and most respected colleagues provided contributions. I hope that this book recognizes the often undervalued effort of emotional labor and directs new research for years to come.