Relationships between emotional labor, job burnout, and emotional intelligence: an analysis combining meta-analysis and structural equation modeling

The present study adopted a meta-analysis design that incorporated structural equation modeling to explore the relationships between emotional labor (EL), job burnout (JB), and emotional intelligence (EI), and enable model validation. The results revealed that EL and JB were significantly and positively correlated, that EI was significantly and positively correlated with EL, and that EI was significantly and negatively correlated with JB. The SEM parameter estimation values were all positive, reaching the level of significance and meeting the basic fit criteria. The total effect size of EL on JB was 0.289, which was equal to the sum of the direct and indirect effect sizes (0.371–0.082). This result indicated that EL affected JB through EI, validating the presence of a moderating effect. Finally, the results were discussed, and practical suggestions were proposed.