The emerging role of emotions in work life: An introduction

Research into the role that emotions play in organizational settings has only recently been revived, following publication in 1983 of Hochschild's The Managed Heart. Since then, and especially over the last five years, the tempo of research in this field has stepped up, with various initiatives such as conferences and e-mail discussion lists playing significant roles. This Special Issue is another initiative in this genre. The six papers in the Special Issue were selected from forty submissions, and cover a wide range of contemporary research issues. The papers deal with the relationship of mood to job characteristics and to job satisfaction, manifestation of anger in dyadic relationships, perceptions and effects of emotional labor, emotional intelligence in selection interviews, and the effects of displays of sadness and anger by leaders. In this introduction, we broadly introduce the topic of emotions in workplace settings, summarize the six papers, and present some directions for future research.