The problems and potential for emotional labour in occupational therapy

Abstract

The Royal College of Occupational Therapists (RCOT) Workforce Survey (2023) provided a worrisome snapshot of the professional challenges faced by over 2600 Occupational Therapists working in the United Kingdom. Organisational stressors such as staff shortages, increased caseloads, insufficient support from managers, as well as personal stressors such as burnout, poor work–life balance and a lack of fulfilment pose a threat to the career longevity and well-being of Occupational Therapists. Despite these troubling data, most survey respondents were positive about the profession itself in terms of feeling enthused about service delivery (79%) and rewarded by their career (93%). Hence, the overarching message is somewhat bittersweet; despite unrelenting working conditions, Occupational Therapists continue to be passionate about providing good-quality person-centred care to clients. This active expression of passion for the profession in this landscape could be explained by the concept of emotional labour, which refers to how employees manage their feelings and expressions during social interactions to meet job-based goals (Grandey and Gabriel, 2015; Hochschild, 1983). Emotional labour has been found to be critical to professional practice in a range of healthcare settings including clinical medicine, nursing and social care (Reily and Weiss, 2016). Nevertheless, emotional labour has received scant attention in Occupational Therapy. The purpose of this editorial is to highlight the main characteristics, issues and opportunities associated with emotional labour in Occupational Therapy research and practice.