Perceived Crowding, Emotional Dissonance, and Their Effects on Emotional Exhaustion and Job Outcomes: A Study in the Airline Industry

The purpose of this thesis is to develop and test a conceptual model that examines the mediating role of emotional dissonance in the relationship between perceived crowding and emotional exhaustion. The model also examines emotional exhaustion as a mediator of the impact of emotional dissonance on service recovery performance, turnover intentions, and absenteeism. In this thesis, data were collected from ground staff members and their supervisors in a low cost airline company in Turkey. The previously given relationships were tested through structural equation modeling. The results suggest that emotional dissonance plays a full mediating role in the relationship between perceived crowding and emotional exhaustion. The results also suggest that emotional dissonance influences turnover intentions and absenteeism only through emotional exhaustion. Contrary to the study hypotheses, the results suggest that emotional dissonance increases emotional exhaustion that in turn leads to higher service recovery performance. Management implications are offered and implications for future research are given. Keywords: Absenteeism; Airline Industry; Emotional Dissonance; Ground Staff; Perceived Crowding; Service Recovery Performance; Turnover Intentions