Testing the stress‐strain‐outcome model in Philippines‐based call centers

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationships between perceived customer unfriendliness, emotional exhaustion, emotional dissonance and turnover intent using the stress–strain–outcome model in the call center industry in the Philippines. In addition, this paper also investigates the mediating effects of leader–member exchange (LMX) and emotional exhaustion. Design/methodology/approach This paper proposed a theoretical model hypothesizing the linkages between the abovementioned variables. Structural equation modeling was used to test the hypotheses using a data set from a sample of 605 Filipino call service representatives. Findings The results indicate that perceived customer unfriendliness as a stressor is a positive predictor of emotional exhaustion and emotional dissonance as strains. In turn, emotional exhaustion and emotional dissonance positively influence turnover intent. The results also reveal that LMX mediates the impact of perceived customer unfriendliness on emotional exhaustion. Further, the exhaustion variable mediates the effect of emotional dissonance on turnover intent. Practical implications The results suggest that contact with unfriendly customers has negative emotional implications and highlight the need for training or intervention programs to help service agents develop coping mechanisms. The results also imply that leader-initiated high-quality LMX could help attenuate perceived customer unfriendliness's impact on emotional exhaustion. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge,this paper is the first to examine and confirm the causal relationships of the proposed model’s variables using the stress–strain–outcome model.

The Effects of Job Insecurity, Emotional Exhaustion, and Met Expectations on Hotel Employees’ Pro-Environmental Behaviors: Test of a Serial Mediation Model

“…Employees are unwilling to engage in proactive PEBs as a result of JIS and emotional exhaustion. The finding with respect to emotional exhaustion as a mediator between JIS and proactive PEB is not only consistent with the stress-strain-outcome model but also obtains support from other studies [27,76,77]. Specifically, employees with the experience of threat and high levels of uncertainty about their jobs are emotionally exhausted at elevated levels and therefore display diminished proactive PEBs.…”

“…For example, Hsieh et al [76] reported that ostracizing behaviors heightened Taiwanese restaurant employees' job tension that in turn resulted in higher proclivity to display nonattendance. Another study indicated that customer unfriendliness aggravated Filipino call center employees' emotional exhaustion, leading to turnover intentions at high levels [77]. In view of the stress-strain-outcome model and the abovementioned evidence, we contend that hotel employees are beset with heightened JIS and therefore suffer from depletion of emotional resources.…”

Career shock and the impact of stress, emotional exhaustion, and resources on entrepreneurial career commitment during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…job satisfaction, turnover intentions, etc.) in a mediating manner (Cheung and Tang, 2010;Jabutay et al, 2023;Um and Harrison, 1998). Drawing upon the SSO model, we posit that stressors, workload, and career shock lead to emotional exhaustion, which in turn hinders entrepreneurial career commitment.…”