Surface Acting to Adhere to Neutral Display Rules: Psychological Detachment as a Protective Factor

Abstract The present two-wave study examined the role of surface acting (i.e., faking one’s emotions) in relation to well-being in an occupational sample characterised by neutral display rules—a group rarely considered in emotional labour research. We proposed that surface acting should impair judges’ emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction via increases in negative affect. Furthermore, we focused on psychological detachment as a protective factor in this process. In a two-wave study (time lag: two months), 713 judges in Germany took part. Path analyses in Mplus supported that changes in negative affect mediated the relationship between surface acting and emotional exhaustion and job satisfaction, respectively. As hypothesized, psychological detachment buffered the adverse effects of surface acting. Specifically, surface acting and negative affect were positively associated for judges with a low tendency, but not for judges with a high tendency, to mentally detach from work. Our study emphasises that the use of a "fake" emotional expression via surface acting is a relevant health-related risk factor for professions with neutral display rules, and that psychological detachment from work acts as a protective factor.