Faking emotions at work does more harm than good, study says

Faking your emotion at work place to elicit real life benefits does more harm than good, a new study has revealed. The study led by a University of Arizona researcher also stated that the adage “Fake it until you make it”—the idea that someone can fake a positive attitude to elicit real-life benefits—often backfires when […]

Faking your emotion at work place to elicit real life benefits does more harm than good, a new study has revealed.

The study led by a University of Arizona researcher also stated that the adage “Fake it until you make it”—the idea that someone can fake a positive attitude to elicit real-life benefits—often backfires when used with co-workers instead, making an effort to actually feel the emotions you display is more productive.

An associate professor, management and organizations in Eller College of Management, Allison Gabriel, who led a team that analyzed two types of emotion regulations that people use at work: surface acting and deep acting, stated that, surface acting is faking what you’re displaying to other people.

He said, within you, you may be upset or frustrated, but on the outside, you’re trying your best to be pleasant or positive while describing the deep acting as trying to change how you feel inside.

The study surveyed working adults in a wide variety of industries including education, manufacturing, engineering and financial services.

“What we wanted to know is whether people choose to engage in emotion regulation when interacting with their co-workers, why they choose to regulate their emotions if there is no formal rule requiring them to do so, and what benefits, if any, they get out of this effort,” Gabriel said.

He said when it comes to regulating emotions with co-workers, four types of people emerged from the study: Non-actors, or those engaging in negligible levels of surface and deep acting: Low actors, or those displaying slightly higher surface and deep acting; Deep actors, or those who exhibited the highest levels of deep acting and low levels of surface acting; and Regulators, or those who displayed high levels of surface and deep acting.

The researchers identified several drivers for engaging in emotion regulation and sorted them into two categories: pro-social and impression management. Pro-social motives include wanting to be a good co-worker and cultivating positive relationships. Impression management motives are more strategic and include gaining access to resources or looking good in front of colleagues and supervisors.

The team found that regulators, in particular, were driven by impression management motives, while deep actors were significantly more likely to be motivated by pro-social concerns. This means that deep actors are choosing to regulate their emotions with co-workers to foster positive work relationships, as opposed to being motivated by gaining access to more resources.

According to the researchers, those benefits include receiving significantly higher levels of support from co-workers, such as help with workloads and offers of advice. Deep actors also reported significantly higher levels of progress on their work goals and trust in their co-workers than the other three groups.

The data also showed that mixing high levels of surface and deep acting resulted in physical and mental strain.

The study results suggest there is a benefit to displaying positive emotions during interactions at work.

He advised that we should be nice to each other adding that not only will people feel better, but people’s performance and social relationships can also improve.