• Iberoamérica
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.73-109
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• 2020

In the tourism industry, emotional labor-related problems are highly likely because workers cannot avoid frequent face-to-face contacts with customers. Emotional labor, however, is not always recognized in the same pattern by every worker in similar situations. As can be see in this research, emotional labor appears to vary depending on individual characteristics and sociocultural and economic conditions. In fact, there are so many factors affecting emotional labor, and the level of influence concerning these factors can vary depending on when and where they are. Psychological and mental pains and stress from emotional labor depend on a number of factors. The expression of emotional labor, depending on age, length of employment and gender, shows a clear difference. In particular, for those who are planning to participate in international labor migration to the United States in the future, emotional labor was often not recognized as a serious problem or rather a positive social and cultural experience. In fact, there are various types of tourism workers in Oaxaca, and their experiences vary greatly depending on individual and economic and sociocultural environments. The emotional labor of the workers in the tourism sector of Oaxaca also has various forms depending on various conditions. Positive or negative perceptions and consequences of emotional labor vary depending on the circumstances of the individual and working conditions. In other words, socioeconomic conditions, individual personality or experiences, sociocultural characteristics, and autonomy in the workplace, have a significant impact. As a result, the forms and effects of emotional labor expressed and understood by tourism workers vary considerably and may vary depending on the situations. Considering these problems, the way emotional labor emerges is greatly influenced by sociocultural or personal factors as well as economic factors. In addition, rather than considering the existence and seriousness of emotional labor as given depending on the nature of a particular industry or work, it should also be recognized that the expression of emotional labor differ considerably from individual to individual. Also, the seriousness of problems caused by emotional labor can be diversified. In this sense, it is necessary to clearly understand the meanings of the dynamism, diversity and multidimensionality of emotional labor from a new perspective.