Emotion work in dentistry : a descriptive and theoretical overview

• Introduction The emotional aspects of work for dentists are little researched. Emotion work is a part of the intervention toolkit of the dentist for example emotional contagion or persuasion of the patient or a way to make other thing easier. As a condition of human service work, the emotional aspects can be a source to burnout because of frequent contradictory emotional demands from the organization, patient, and the dentist self. However, the emotional aspects of work can also be a source to positive inner experiences. Eudaimonic and hedonic rewards can arise from the interaction with patients, and thereby potentially enhance satisfaction and fulfillment of work. Material and methods A questionnaire was developed covering the multidimensional concept of good work, including perceptions of emotion work. A total of 1835 dentists randomly sampled from the dental associations were sent a questionnaire in November 2008. Because emotion work in dentistry has little previous research, a theoretical overview and conceptualization for dentistry were created. Principal components analysis (PCA) was used to reduce measures of emotion work. Covariance between the indices and variables were grouped as setting, work and person. Results The average net response rate was 68% (n = 1226). Three dimensions were theoretically relevant in the dental context: Emotion work, emotional labor and emotional work can all influence the dentist in different ways. PCA of the questions showed unidimensional solutions and six indices were created: Patient relations values, emotional support, emotional display, emotional dissonance, emotional hedonic rewards and emotional eudaimonic rewards stable over gender and nationality. Conclusion Emotion work is a considerable part of being a professional dentist. It is requirement of work as well as constituting the balance between being dentist and person. Potentially, emotion work can influence the dentists’ perceptions of work in a positive way. The emotional aspects of work should be investigated more closely as a central component of work environment and job satisfaction.

Ämnesord

MEDICIN OCH HÄLSOVETENSKAP  -- Klinisk medicin -- Odontologi (hsv//swe)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES  -- Clinical Medicine -- Dentistry (hsv//eng)

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