Waiting—A Source of Hostile Interaction in an Emergency Clinic

Abstract

In a study of a Swedish emergency clinic, it was found that patients' waiting produced different forms of hostile interaction between staff members and patients. A patient's hostility was interpreted as being not only a result of waiting per se but also-and predominantly-due to some features inherent in the relevant situation: the semiotics of space and the organization of waiting. Emotional and interactional responses to patient hostility included invoking counter moralities, adopting a certain style of interaction, and performing minor acts of revenge. The former are analyzed as expressions of veiled hostility, whereas descriptions of acts of revenge indicate the moral boundaries of proper nursing work. In such work, hostile expressivity is characteristically restrained and resentment must be veiled; consequently, Scheler's analysis of ressentiment is applied.