Why and when surface acting interferes with family functioning: The role of psychological detachment and family-supportive supervisor behaviors

Emotional labor is a well-documented work stressor that may have important implications for preschool teachers. Integrating conservation of resources theory and the stressors-detachment model, this study seeks to develop a moderated mediation model in which two forms of surface acting (i.e., faked positive emotions and suppressed negative emotions) would be indirectly associated with poor family functioning via psychological detachment, and the indirect association would be moderated by family-supportive supervisor behaviors. This study was investigated among 411 preschool teachers in Chinese society. Results revealed that both faked positive emotions and suppressed negative emotions led to impaired family functioning, and lack of psychological detachment mediated the detrimental effects. The moderated mediation analyses further showed that the mediated path became weaker for preschool teachers received more family-supportive supervisor behaviors. These findings deepen our practical and theoretical understanding of why and when surface acting impacts preschool teachers’ family lives.