Healing from within: the role of workplace spirituality as a soft-TQM practice and emotional labour in healthcare

Purpose Amid growing global concern for the psychological sustainability of healthcare professionals (HCPs), this study investigates the role of Workplace Spirituality (WOPS) as a soft total quality management (TQM) practice in enhancing employee wellbeing. Grounded in conservation of resources (COR) theory, WOPS is conceptualized as an organizational resource caravan that shapes emotional labour strategies specifically, surface acting, deep acting and genuine acting as mediators of wellbeing. Design/methodology/approach A cross-sectional survey design was employed, utilizing data from 555 healthcare professionals working in private healthcare institutions in India. Validated, multi-dimensional instruments were used to measure WOPS, emotional labour strategies and employee wellbeing. The conceptual model was empirically tested using partial least squares structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) to examine direct and mediated effects. Findings The results provide robust empirical support for WOPS as a dual-pathway enhancer of wellbeing: directly through meaning-making and indirectly through emotional regulation. Specifically, genuine acting emerged as a significant positive mediator, indicating its resource-preserving and authenticity-enhancing function. In contrast, surface acting negatively mediated the relationship, reflecting its resource-depleting and dissonance-inducing nature. Deep acting was not a significant mediator, suggesting its limited adaptive value within high-intensity caregiving roles. Research limitations/implications Theoretically, this study advances COR theory by conceptualizing emotional labour strategies as asymmetrical mediators, where surface acting depletes, and genuine acting replenishes, psychological resources. Practically, it provides actionable guidance for healthcare leaders and HR professionals aiming to embed meaning-driven, value-oriented HRM practices that bolster emotional regulation and promote sustainable employee wellbeing. However, the cross-sectional design limits causal inference, and the exclusive focus on private healthcare professionals in India may restrict generalizability to public or cross-cultural contexts. Future research should adopt longitudinal, multi-level and cross-cultural methodologies to capture the evolving nexus between organizational spirituality, emotional regulation and wellbeing across settings and time. Originality/value This study uniquely positions WOPS as a soft-TQM practice and redefines emotional labour as an organizationally shaped response rather than a solely individual burden. It introduces genuine acting as a critical yet underexplored emotional labour mechanism and expands the geographical scope of workplace spirituality research into the Indian healthcare context.