A Revolutionary Shift in Global Business Practices: Emotional Labour

What is “emotional labour”?

Let’s look at the examples given by Mind Tools:

"Well, now there's a mark on my water glass. Get me a new one!"

"You expect me to pay full price for this meal? I was served runny eggs and had to go out of my way to ask for water, which was then brought in a dirty glass. I can't believe it. There will certainly be no tip for you, young lady!"

Does your job require you to manage your emotions, or the way you express those emotions, to meet organizational expectations? This is called 'emotional labor.' People in a service-oriented role - hotel workers, airline flight attendants, tour operators, coaches, counselors - often face the demands of emotional labor.

Emotional labor is officially defined as “the act of expressing organizationally desired emotions

during service transactions” (Morris & Feldman 2). It is the effort, planning, and control needed

to express organizationally desired emotions during interpersonal transactions, intended to promote an organizationally desired state of emotion within a customer (Sass).

Arlie Hochschild created the term 'emotional labor' in 1983 to describe the things that service workers do that goes beyond physical or mental duties. Showing a genuine concern for customers' needs, smiling, and making positive eye contact are all critical to a customer's perception of service quality. These types of activities, when they're essential to worker performance, are emotional labor. (1)

According to Hochschild (1983), organizations are increasingly willing to direct and control how employees present themselves to others. In other words, the images employees create for customers and the quality of interactions between employees and customers have come increasingly under the control of management. As a consequence, a key component of the work performed by many workers has become the presentation of emotions that are specified and desired by their organizations. (Morris & Feldman 2)

When you face angry clients, or people who are generally unpleasant, emotional labor can be particularly challenging. A large part of that challenge comes from the need to hide your real emotions, and continue to 'smile and nod your head,' even when receiving negative or critical feedback.

Companies often place a great deal of strategic importance on service orientation, not only to external customers but to colleagues and internal clients as well. While emotional labor is applicable to many areas of business, the consequences are probably greatest in traditional service roles. However, in an increasingly service-oriented marketplace, it's important to understand how emotional labor affects workers, and what organizations can do to support and manage any issues.

The following video displays a case in which an employee feels one way but is forced to present emotions contrary to her true emotions in order to fulfill her duties as an employee.

We will be discussing four perspectives to demonstrate the revolutionary shift of global business practices in emotional labor. They are the following: the organizational perspective, cultural perspective, economical perspective and knowledge management perspective. Each perspective has been supported with real-life examples from multinationals to relate to international management contexts. Furthermore, two case studies have been presented to showcase exemplary and unusual emotional labor instances in the marketplace: The Walt Disney Company and Japan’s Rent-a-Friend Business.

Organizational Perspective

1.  Causes of the shift

1.1  Change of customer demand

More people are getting richer, they demand more on the things they spent on. Instead of better quality of products, they want better quality of products and services.

As indicated on below figures, the world GDP, and different countries GDPs keep increasing.

The growing GDP among countries shows that on average personal wealth of global citizen increased. When people are richer, they are able to enjoy higher quality of goods and services.

1.2  Change of customer group

Due to the technological and globalization, people can go to other countries easily by simply taking some hours of flight. Every year, thousands of millions of people go to other countries for businesses, visiting, and so on.

Taking Hong Kong as an example:

“The Hong Kong Tourism Board (HKTB) announced on the 21st of December that visitor arrivals to Hong Kong reached 37,770,230 in the first 11 months of 2011. The figure not only represents a 16.3%-increase compared to the equivalent period in 2010, but has also surpassed the yearly total of 2010. In November alone, arrivals rose by 16.4% year-on-year to 3,552,733, making it the November with the highest number of visitor arrivals in record.”

The visitor arrivals from different market regions in November and the first 11 months of 2011: 

This implicates that the customer groups shifts from local customers to local and global customers. Different customers from all over the world have their own cultures. In order to turn the change as an opportunity for organization, organization needs to vary its business strategies.

1.3  Increase competition

Due to globalization, many multi-national companies enter local markets. This leads to greater competition in almost all kinds of businesses locally. We can take the airline companies as an example.

There are many airline companies providing service from Hong Kong to Singapore. They are Singapore Airline, United Airline, Cathay Pacific, Jet Star, Hong Kong Airline, Philippine Airline, Malaysia Airline, and so on. Customer has numerous choices to choose which airline company to take. On the other hand, there will be great competition among airline companies.

2.  How “emotional labour” increase competitiveness of organization?

2.1  People are intangible asset (8)

Tangible asset such as strategies can be copied by competitors easily or after certain period of time. However, people are intangible asset to the organization and are what competitors cannot copy. Having well-trained and high quality talents are the competitive advantage of the organization.

Michael and Milorad suggested that organization shifting in strategic attention from efficient management of tangible resources to effective management of intangible asset. Under today’s rigorous business world, in order to maintain organization’s competitive advantage, organization is shifting its strategy from efficient tangible resources management to effective intangible assets management. In this point, the growing popularity of emotional labour that is trained to provide excellent services to customers plays an important role.

2.2  Service charges

As mentioned above, consumers are now demanding better quality of both goods and services. Sometimes, they are willing to pay a higher cost for the same goods because of better services provided.

Let’s compare different ticket fee of two airline companies – Singapore Airlines and Jet Star

Both airlines flight from Hong Kong to Singapore on 26th March 2012 and return on 6th April 2012. However, the ticket fee of Singapore Airlines ranges from HK3855 to HK4605 where Jetstar Airline ranges from HK1538 to HK2048. Singapore Airlines is double the ticket price of that in Jetstar. The underlining reason is that these two airline companies provide different quality of services to customers.

From this example, it demonstrates that organizations enjoy higher service charges when they are able to provide better service quality to customers. Emotional labour is the key factor in providing superior services. Also, it is another way to differentiate your organization towards competitors.

3.  More to be done

3.1  Organizational learning

Kris and Angappa stated that organizational learning has been considered to be an effective developmental initiative in organizations that have a mission to develop, to sustain and to advance. (9)

A learning organization actively creates, captures, transfers, and mobilizes knowledge to enable it to adapt to a changing environment. Thus, the key aspect of organizational learning is the interaction that takes place among individuals. (10)

Under today’s fast changing business environment, organization should be able to adapt the changes, be flexible and innovative. Emotional labour is a good example. In order to meet the changing demand on service quality, emotional labours are trained to manage their emotion and provide satisfactory service to customers. The world is still changing every minute, therefore, it is important that organization should keep learning and changing. A Chinese saying is that “Sailing against the current, if you do not move forward, you will fall behind”.

3.2  Training

Emotional labours indeed affect their performance. Organization needs to train employees to manage their emotions. Some very common concept on training emotional labour are: customer is always right and always greet customers with a smile.

In addition, more important thing is to support their employees and help them to deal with their emotions. It is sensible to help employees dealing with the consequences of emotional labour. This may improve staff morale and reduce staff turnover.

We can take a look of some common strategies suggested by Mind Tools that organizations use to help their staff deal with the demands of emotional labour:

•           Offer staff assistance programs - Organizations invest in the care and development of their workers by providing access to stress management and emotional health services. This strategy recognizes that emotional labor can be hard work.

•           Teach problem-solving techniques - To move workers beyond using scripts or relying on other display rules, some companies help their staff solve problems more effectively. This helps people build confidence, and reduce their negative reactions to angry or unpredictable situations. The better that worker is able to deal with problems, the more likely they are to resolve interpersonal issues before they lead to negative emotions.

•           Improve emotional intelligence - The ability to recognize other people's emotions is an effective way to reduce the burden of emotional labor. Building empathy and using other emotional intelligence tools help reduce the likelihood that emotional conflict will lead to emotional exhaustion.

•           Share knowledge - One of the most effective ways to help people deal with the realities of emotional labor is to share success stories. Allow staff to learn how others successfully deal with the impact of emotional conflict. (1)

The Cultural Perspective

In the cultural perspective, it is important to take note of differences of reactions in culture to norms of emotional labor. Societal norms vary across cultures. The world is becoming a “[…] diverse workplace where many cultures collide.”

Culture is behind our behavior on the job. Often without our realization, culture influences how close we stand, how loud we speak, how we deal with conflict-even how we participate in a meeting. (P.142, HR Magazine)

Norms within one country may work in its location but may backfire in another. For example, when McDonald's opened a fast-food outlet in Moscow, staff members were trained to refer to Western norms of good service, which included smiling at customers. However, this particular norm did not exist in the former Soviet Union, which prompted some customers to conclude that staff members were mocking them.

It is also essential to pay attention when the service provider and the customer stem from different cultural backgrounds. An approach taking this focus into consideration is the dynamic constructivist approach (Hong & Chiu, 2001), which treats culture as an internalized “network of knowledge and practices that is produced, distributed, and reproduced among […] interconnected people” (Chiu & Hong, 2005). This view regards cultures as dynamic open systems that transcend geographical boundaries and evolve over time (Hong & Chiu, 2001). This theoretical perspective provides a broad lens for what constitutes an intercultural service encounter. Examples include a German tourist staying at an American hotel in the U.S. (different national culture), or a Hispanic waitress serving an Asian customer in a restaurant (different ethnic culture).

With greater globalization, service companies will be required to conduct their business with culturally diverse customers. Ethnic minorities are growing steadily and increasingly possess more purchasing power (Furrer & Sollberger, 2007). International travel and immigration have seen an explosive growth (Ng, Lee, & Soutar, 2007). It is therefore important to determine what constitutes good service in general? Does it mean the same thing for everyone? Or should consumers with different cultural backgrounds receive different types of treatment to better satisfy their expectations?

In the Service Industry

Prior research has shown that customers from different cultural backgrounds have different expectations and attitudes toward service encounters, which affect service interactions and evaluations. Service encounters are defined as “dyadic interactions between a customer and a service provider” and a form of human interaction characterized by its intangible nature.

It has been shown that when service providers and customers possess same cultural backgrounds, service encounters often result automatically, requiring only a minimum of cognitive activity. Customer interactions are social exchanges, repetitive and routine in nature, which are therefore likely to be scripted. Problems can occur because the service provider’s performance is not aligned with the expectations of customers, or if customers do not behave as expected by the service company.

A study comparing service encounter evaluations (Winsted 1997) of American and Japanese restaurant guests found significant differences in the relative importance customers placed on eight service dimensions: authenticity of behavior, caring, customer control, courtesy, friendliness, formality, personalization, and promptness. Half of these dimensions, namely authenticity, caring, courtesy, and friendliness, can be related to emotional labor.

Another study conducted by Barker and Härtel (2004) demonstrated that based on the verbal and nonverbal cues of service employees, culturally diverse customers from a different ethnic background felt dissatisfaction from receiving inequitable service. Foreign customers admitted that they perceived service providers were treating them with unfriendly or sarcastic tones of voice, more suspicion and lack of trust (i.e., thinking the customer might steal), general avoidance (e.g., not acknowledging the customer’s presence, serving someone else first), and less effort.

Most recently, Sharma, Tam, and Kim (2009) proposed a conceptual framework for intercultural service encounters that focuses on perceived cultural distance and cultural competence. They conducted an exploratory qualitative study where customers and employees from different cultures were interviewed in a variety of service settings. Their findings concluded that perceived cultural distance and cultural competence had effects on inter-role congruence, which is the degree of agreement between both parties on each other’s role in a social interaction; interaction comfort, adequate service level, perceived service quality, and satisfaction.

These findings showcase the importance of studying cultural service interactions. What traits should service providers instill in their employees to properly handle an intercultural service interaction? How do such interactions impact the physiological and psychological health of service employees?

In general, there will be a similar level of performance in certain industries where norms of emotional labor can be transferred across cultures. For example: remaining calm during airplane flight for flight attendants or solemn, sympathetic attitudes at funeral homes. These behaviors are expected throughout all cultures. However, more neutral-emotional settings such as the fast food industry or hospitality create an area with more leniency in behaviors and different expectations depending on cultural backgrounds.  Therefore, especially with increasing globalization, it is important for service providers to become aware of cultural discrepancies to ensure consistent customer satisfaction.

However, there is also the dilemma of maintaining company standards and reputation. Cultural standards may demand that companies change or remove intrinsic policies or conduct that do not align with locally expected behavior, even if these elements have been part of the company’s system for a long time. For instance, McDonald’s central values include delivering a ‘happy experience’. However, as previously mentioned, this ‘happy’ atmosphere with smiling employees does not resonate with Moscow customers, where this type of service comes across as mocking and insincere.

Many projects have been started in countries to manage globalization to better accommodate Western culture. Instilling ‘smiling’ by introducing smiling school for Japanese workers to become more culturally acclimated to Western behaviors (See video below).

Chinese flight attendants in training practice by clamping a single wooden chopstick in the mouth to have a better, sweeter smile.

In the context of intercultural service encounters, important parameters are the cultural differences that exist between the parties involved in the encounter, individual differences due to personality and life history, and intercultural knowledge and experiences (Stauss & Mang, 1999).

Stauss and Mang (1999) stated that “If the employees have inter-cultural experience, and if they are aware of the verbal and non-verbal codes used in different cultural areas, they are able to vary their body language, e.g. eye contact, in order to adapt to the type and scope of the explicit information”.

A culturally competent manager will create opportunities for individuals to take some risks and explore projects that don’t require coordinating with others and a manager who is aware of different cultural norms is less likely to incorrectly interpret behaviors. (P.142, HR Magazine). Therefore, it is important for managers to be aware of these cultural discrepancies to better support their own staff and to leverage relationships with their customers, especially with growing globalization.

Economical Perspective

Prior to the Second World War, the Japanese was a developing economy. It wasn’t until the post war that Japan skyrocketed to become the second largest economy in the world, only recently surpassed by China in 2010. Japan can attribute its economic success to Japanese Keiretsu, which is also known as the close relationship shared between manufacturers, suppliers and distributors - and the guarantee of lifelong employment.
These displayed emotions have economic value, which can be transformed into wages, salaries, or tips.

A major reason for this increased attention is due to a change in the economy; as the ecnonmy in mosty of the developed countries has shifted from manufacturing to the service industry, the nature of the job role requirements has changed. Whereas workers in factories deal with machines, service providers interact with people.
Emotionally charged employee-customers interactions are essential to product delivery in service job roles.

In the service industry in general, as well as the hospitality industry in particular, being friendly or nice to people is a value added part of the product that employees provide (Schneider & Bowen, 1985). Most managers in the field assume that the friendliness and good nature of employees are strongly related to customer satisfaction  and increase customer commitment, loyalty, and therefore, affect bottom lines.

There aren't many jobs left that require zero emotional labour. Just about every occupation requires you to express emotions you don't feel.

The latest financial crisis started in the wake of the banking panic that erupted in September 2008 and the implosion of financial institutions involving Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac, Lehman Brothers, AIG and others associated with the panic. (Rasmus 2009) The latest financial crisis is often referred to as the worst economic crisis since the great depression in the 1930s. During the years from 2008 thousands of people lost their jobs around the world and companies suffered from the decreased market demand. Although, the crisis also changed attitudes and business practices among the companies towards the labor force but also the workers attitude towards work.

The financial crisis became emergent and affected the whole world because of the economic and political globalization that makes countries, economies and companies interdependent of each other. As Chase-Dunn, Kawano and Nikitin claim, in the article: Globalization - a worlds system perspective; economic globalization means globe-spanning economic relationships. This shows not at least the interrelationships and the networks between different economical actors. The extent of this globalization though trade and investments has also increased during the recent decades. Such a huge crisis that emerged during the 2008 is therefore affecting more actors than ever before in the world, is also spread faster, and makes a lot more harm. (Chase-Dunn et al)

The companies had to find ways to reduce its costs during the deep recession. The 26^th of January 2009 was referred to as the “Black Monday”; big companies, such as Caterpillar, Corus, Home Depot, ING, Pfizer and Sprint Nextel, announced that they were going to cut thousands of jobs. This because of the rapidly deteriorating global economy. The companies had to ensure their survival through saving jobs. Even though the companies would not cut their labor force, they had to take other actions to save themselves, actions that could be even worse that work cut, such as salary cuts, reduced hours and forced vacations. (Economist.com 29^th of January 2009)

Though, many leaders of the companies admit that the crisis is giving them the opportunity to actually restructure the firm, make cost reduction and increase the internal efficiency in the firm. These are all actions that should have been taken before.
Actions like this can also be discussed through a moral perspective. The companies could use the worldwide economic situation as an excuse to fire workers. 

This shows also that the temporary financial crisis actually can lead a long-term transition in business practice. The companies are doing cost efficiency and only the best and most efficient workers can stay in the firm. According to this argumentation the shift in the working values should rather lead to a shift towards that people work harder to not risk being outsourced by the companies which they work for.

However, a lot of big companies were criticised for their selfishness and narrow mindedness in these times, and came under scrutiny from the public and the media; and so in the end, the downturn forced firms and governments to rethink employment practices. The value of work was re-evaluated as employee health was affected by the emerging physical and emotional stresses of the workplace. And as a result, there is an overarching shift towards a more unstructured, individually tailored, diverse workplace where employees attach greater value to leisure and employees are more conscious of employee health.

The point I'm trying to make, though, is that with the global economy rapidly turning into a service economy, emotional labour is becoming the predominant work that people do.
Because of the shift from service to manufacturing, and generally because more secure relationships ensure greater motivation throughout companies, and thus attributes to positive bottom line figures, which stimulate the economy.

Case study 1: An Insight of Emotional Labor at the Walt Disney Company 

The Walt Disney Company, founded in 1923, is a diversified international family entertainment with 4 business segments: media networks, parks and resorts, studio entertainment and consumer products. Its first park and resort, the Disneyland Park, was built in 1952 in Anaheim, California.

It has expanded to include a cruise line, vacation club resort and five resort locations over three continents:

Disneyland Resort, Anaheim, California

Walt Disney World Resort, Lake Buena Vista, Florida

Tokyo Disney Resort, Urayasu, Chiba

Disneyland Resort Paris, Marne La Valle, France

Hong Kong Disneyland, Penny's Bay, Lantau Island

This particular segment is of special interest as it is a prime example of the most successful corporate cultures exhibiting outstanding emotional behavior. Disney executive Bill Ross has said that “this is a feeling business and we make our profits from that.” Disney employees at the front line of the organization are the ones who must provide these feelings. “The work-a-day practices that employees adopt to amplify or dampen customer spirits are therefore a core concern of this feeling business.” (Van Maanen, P.1)

Disney makes the promise of ‘turning the ordinary into the extraordinary’ and making ‘dreams come true every day.’ “In general, Disneyland employees are remarkable for their forbearance and polite good manners even under trying conditions.” (P.10).

Employees’ behavior is said to be governed by these three rules:

First, we practice the friendly smile.

Second, we use only friendly and courteous phrases.

Third, we are not stuffy - the only Misters in Disneyland are Mr. Toad and Mr. Smee.

(P.5)

Frontline employees are carefully recruited and trained to maintain the Disney atmosphere, no matter their role, from sweepers to fast food servers to tour ambassadors.

“During orientation, considerable concern is placed on particular values the Disney organization considers central to its operations. These values range from the "customer is king" verities to the more or less unique kind, of which "everyone is a child at heart when at Disneyland" is a decent example.

Elaborate checklists of appearance standards are learned and gone over in the classroom and great efforts are spent trying to bring employee emotional responses in line with such standards. Employees are told repeatedly that if they are happy and cheerful at work, so, too, will the guests at play. Inspirational films, hearty pep talks, family imagery, and exemplars of corporate performance are all representative of the strong symbolic stuff of these training rites.” (P.7)

They are further supervised and punished, should they slip out of their roles. This places incredible pressure for employees, who must stay in character throughout the entire duration of their shift, no matter which circumstance.

“Throughout the year, each land is assigned a number of area supervisors who, dressed alike in short-sleeved white shirts and ties with walkie-talkies hitched to their belts, wander about their territories on the lookout for deviations from park procedures (and other signs of disorder).” (P.8)

When Walt Disney was alive, newcomers and veterans alike were told how much he enjoyed coming to the park and just how exacting he was about the conditions he observed. For employees, the cautionary whoop, "Walt's in the park," could often bring forth additional energy and care for one's part in the production.

The effort which must be placed into Disney employees’ jobs everyday are reinforced by a feeling of obligation to maintain Disney’s legacy and promise.

“The orderliness- a good part of the Disney formula for financial success- is an accomplishment based not only on physical design and elaborate procedures, but also on the low-level, part-time employees who, in the final analysis, must be willing, even eager, to keep the show afloat.” P. 10. Some employees even go as far as to that they are really "on-stage" at work.

Park employees have admitted to feeling guilty if they ever complained about being too tired to smile. They are aware of the fact that their presence is part of the package being sold and that it crucial that they maintain appearances for the sake of the company. Employees are further kept in check not only by their own self-monitoring but through customer feedback and monitoring.

An interesting and entertaining video entitled 'Confessions of  Disney Employee' demonstrates the Disney worklife through the eyes of an actual past employee: 

What are the consequences of pushing employees to such a constant degree of feigned cheerfulness? 

Disney employees have admitted to feeling 'zoned out' or 'on automatic' once they start their shift, which further results in emotional dissonance. Could this be considered a health risk in the workplace? Should companies be credited for being able to instill such emotional spirit in their employees or criticized for abusing them?  What are your thoughts?

Case Study II: Emotional Labor in the Japan Rent-A-Friend Business

Need to make a good impression at a big upcoming social event but don’t have a boyfriend or girlfriend? Need a best man to speak at your wedding but haven’t found one? An ‘uncle’ to support your fatherless children at their sports events? Why not ‘rent-a-friend’ to cure you of these social problems?

Japan is currently experiencing a growing service sector that rents out fake spouses, best men, relatives, friends, colleagues, boyfriends and girlfriends to “spare their clients' blushes at social functions such as weddings and funerals.”

Ichinokawa launched his Hagemashi Tai [I Want to Cheer You Up] agency in 2006, after first attempting to become a qualified counsellor. He opened the agency after being hired to act as best man at a couple’s wedding despite not even knowing them. His act was a success and customers began requesting this service. "People wanted women, old and young people, all sorts, but of course I couldn't play all those roles myself."

He now employs 30 agents of various ages and both sexes, across Japan with the skills and personality to temporarily adopt a new identity. His is not the only agency of this type. These agencies have been growing at a rapid pace in the past years. Another company, Office Agent, is the most well-known and employs 1,000 people.

Agents charge 15,000 yen (£100) to appear at a wedding party, but extra if they are asked to make a speech or to sing karaoke. Preparation is exhaustive, examining every possible question that, if answered incorrectly or not at all, will embarrass clients and ruin the agency’s reputation.

"If I'm pretending to be someone's husband, I make sure I know everything about my 'wife', from her mobile phone number to what 'our' kids have been getting up to lately," says Ichinokawa.

The rise of this service for fake-friends is a symptom of social and economic changes, combined with a deep-seated cultural aversion to giving personal and professional problems a public airing. Japan has a culture of extreme fear of vulnerability and defeat.

The agency received such demands as fake bosses for unemployed men, from divorcees and singles searching for companionship; agents to act as rival suitors; agents to act as uncles to children being bullied at school…etc.

In relation to emotional labor, such a service requires the most extreme of efforts on the part of the ‘agent’ to create a façade of emotions and to stay ‘in character’ throughout the entire duration of the service. Ever single detail about the client must be memorized to truly deliver a believable performance.

One can say that such a service is social cure for those lacking in this dimension in their lives. But is it truly beneficial?

One perspective argues: “However, in helping clients cover up their problems, the agents seem to be acting more in the role of social prostitutes, giving short-term relief that must be kept secret at all costs. Creating the façade of a life without problems is immensely seductive but it is the client who is fooled in the end.”

In a culture that prides itself on the importance of form and structure ­ on putting on a good public appearance - it is perhaps especially shameful when the facts of one's life don't correspond to how they are supposed to be. For many people, these discrepancies convey a terrible sense of failure and inadequacy. Having to hire friends and relatives only highlights the isolation of such clients and how much intimacy is lacking in their lives.

What thoughts come to mind with this type of sector? Is it simply ‘acting in real life’ or social prostitution?

Conclusion

From these discussions, we look at four perspectives related to emotional labour: the organizational perspective, cultural perspective, economical and knowledge management perspective.

The intensity of emotional labour varies from cultures. For instance, we need to manage and meet different cultures needs. Managers should train their staff to become more culturally competent to better serve their global customers.

From the organization perspective, international management implies that organization should be more flexible and responsive to the needs of changing customers groups. In addition, training should be provided to employees, to manage customer relationships. Overall, emotional labor is a revolutionary shift in global business practices, one with big impacts on international management, therefore, one that should not be overlooked.

References:

1.      "Emotional Labor -- Helping Workers Present a Positive Face." - Team Management Training from MindTools.com. Web. 21 Mar. 2012. <http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMM_44.htm>.

2.         Emotional Labour. Dir. Chendhurnathan. YouTube. YouTube, 27 Nov. 2010. Web. 21 Mar. 2012. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eTvUUaC05G4>.

3.         "List of Countries by GDP (nominal)." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 20 Mar. 2012. Web. 21 Mar. 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(nominal)>.

4.         Hong Kong. VISITOR ARRIVALS IN FIRST 11 MONTHS OF 2011. Web. 21 Mar. 2012. <http://tw.partnernet.hktb.com/pnweb/jsp/doc/listDoc.jsp?doc_id=141094>.

5.         Singapore Airlines. Web. 21 Mar. 2012. <http://singaporeair.com/booking-flow.form?execution=e1s1>.

6.         "Jetstar Airways Cheap Flights, Low Fares All Day Everyday from the World's Best Cheap Fare Airline." Book Cheap Flights. Web. 21 Mar. 2012. <http://book.jetstar.com/SessionExpired.aspx?culture=en-AU>.

7.         Harvey, Michael, and Milorad M. Novicevic. "The Hypercompetitive Global Marketplace: The Importance of Intuition and Creativity in Expatriate Managers." Journal of World Business 37.2 (2002): 127-38. Print.

8.         Law, Kris M.Y., and Angappa Gunasekaran. Dynamic Organizational Learning: A Conceptual Framework 41.62009: 314-20. Print.

9.      "Organizational Learning." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 18 Mar. 2012. Web. 21 Mar. 2012. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Organizational_learning>.

 Ashworth, Blake, and Ronald Humphrey. "Emotional Labor in Service Roles: The Influence of Identity." Academy of Management Review 18.1 (1993): 88-115. ABI/INFORM. Web.

"The Fear behind Japan's Flourishing Rent-a-friend Business." The Week UK. 25 Sept. 2009. Web. 25 Mar. 2012. <http://www.theweek.co.uk/politics/19611/fear-behind-japans-flourishing-rent-friend-business>.

Gardenwartz, Lee, and Anita Rowe. "Cross-Cultural Awareness." HR Magazine Mar. 2001: 139-41. Web.

James S. Sass (2000): Emotional labor as cultural performance: The communication of caregiving in a nonprofit nursing home, Western Journal of Communication, 64:3, 330-358

McCance, Andrea Silke. "Emotional Labor in Intercultural Service Encounters: An Experience Sampling Study." Diss. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2010. Print.

McCurry, Justin. "Lonely Japanese Find Solace in 'rent a Friend' Agencies." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 20 Sept. 2009. Web. 27 Mar. 2012. <http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/sep/20/japan-relatives-professional-stand-ins>.

"McDonalds.com." McDonald's. Web. 27 Mar. 2012. <http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/home.html>.

Morris, J. Andrew, and Daniel C. Feldman. "The Dimensions, Antecedents and Consequences of Emotional Labor." Academy of Management Review 21.4 (1996). ABI/Inform. Web.

"The Walt Disney Company and Affiliated Companies - Company Overview." The Walt Disney Company and Affiliated Companies. Web. 27 Mar. 2012. <http://corporate.disney.go.com/corporate/overview.html>.