LAUSR

Abstract Emotional labor is considered as part of occupational norms, especially in the upscale hotel industry that offers high-end customer services. This study focuses on the positive effects of surface acting and examines how hotel employees' surface acting, or the masking of real feelings and the corresponding display of desirable emotions is related to job satisfaction. The study tests the moderating role of emotional intelligence and the mediating role of perceived individualized consideration in the relationship between surface acting and job satisfaction. The current study highlights the role of supervisors’ individualized consideration as a moderated mediator of the surface acting–job satisfaction relationship. This research contributes to the literature by adding evidence in support of the bright side of emotional labor.