Examining the curvilinear relationship between emotional labour and work engagement: evidence from Chinese beginning EFL teachers

The teaching process necessitates both emotional labour and work engagement. Although English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers’ emotional labour has been extensively explored, and some studies have verified the mediating role of several variables, such as stress and organizational commitment, in the relationship between emotional labour and work engagement, the studies involving the relationship between emotional labour and work engagement have reported conflicting results. The attrition rate of EFL teachers reaches its highest during the initial decade of their teaching careers, showing the emotional difficulties they face since beginning their careers. This research utilized a quantitative approach and focused on a group of 432 Chinese beginning EFL teachers. Drawing on the conservation of resources (COR) theory, this study proposes a non-linear relationship between emotional labour and work engagement. The results of the curve estimation show that the four dimensions of emotional labour—surface acting, deep acting, positive consonance and negative consonance—have a significant U-shaped relationship with work engagement. The results indicate that beginning EFL teachers are inclined to engage in work when their emotional labour is either high or low, while a moderate level of emotional labour may hinder their work engagement. In light of these findings, this study proposes some theoretical and practical implications.