A study on the structural relationship between emotional labor, job burnout, and turnover intention among office workers in Korea: the moderated mediating effect of leader-member exchange

Abstract

Abstract Background This research investigated the interplay of emotional labor, job burnout, and leader-member exchange on turnover intentions among office workers in South Korea. Methods An online survey was conducted with 333 employees working in Korean small- and medium-sized enterprises. The target sample consisted of in-house employees who do not deal with external customers. All the measurement and structural models of this study were analyzed using SPSS 27.0 and Amos 28.0. Results The survey revealed that emotional labor indirectly influenced turnover intentions via job burnout and leader-member exchange. Deep acting intensified job burnout, thereby elevating turnover intentions, while surface acting mitigated job burnout. Conclusions The findings underscored the importance of managing emotional labor and job burnout and fostering robust leader-member relationships to reduce staff turnover. Moreover, leader-member exchange was found to mitigate the effects of emotional labor on job burnout and turnover intention, with higher leader-member exchange reducing the negative impact of deep acting on turnover intention through job burnout.