When Exhaustion Drives Distance: The Role of Turnover Intentions and Surface Acting in Workplace Bonds

Emotional exhaustion is inherently tied to the occupation of flight attendants. This often leads to their turnover which incurs significant cost related to their rehiring and training. Existing literature extensively investigates the causes of flight attendants' turnover; however, it has not thoroughly explored how their workplace exchange relationships unfold during the critical period between their decision to leave and their eventual departure from the company. This study addresses this gap by leveraging social exchange and resource conservation theories. Data was collected from 200 flight attendants employed across five airlines registered in Pakistan. Benefiting from Smart PLS 4.0, confirmatory factor analysis, reliability, validity, and predictive relevance were established prior to conducting the mediation and moderation analyses. The results indicate a significant inclination (64%) among emotionally exhausted flight attendants to consider leaving their jobs, with surface acting intensifying this effect even further (71%). Consequently, their contributions to Team Member Exchange (TMX) and Leader Member Exchange (LMX) were found to decrease sharply by 36% and 41% respectively. These findings provide critical insights for flight services managers in the airline industry, underscoring the need to closely monitor exchange relationships among flight attendants and address declines in LMX and TMX. While turnover intentions may not always be overtly expressed, this research provides the empirical evidence suggesting that the observable decline in TMX and LMX can act as early warning signs. Recognizing and addressing these declines in a timely manner could enable these managers to proactively intervene, mitigate these potential challenges, and possibly prevent employee turnover, thereby fostering a more sustainable workforce.