Customer Aggression, Emotional Exhaustion, and Hotel Employee Outcomes: A Study in the United Arab Emirates

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to develop and test a conceptual model that investigates emotional exhaustion as a mediator of the effects of customer aggression on life satisfaction and turnover intentions. The model also examines supervisor support as a moderator of the relationships among customer aggression, emotional exhaustion, and the previously mentioned outcomes. Data were gathered from a sample of full-time Arab frontline employees in the international five-star chain hotels of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. The hypothesized relationships were tested using LISREL 8.30 through path analysis. The results demonstrate that emotional exhaustion partially mediates the effects of customer aggression on life satisfaction and turnover intentions. The results further reveal that supervisor support acts as a moderator of the impacts of emotional exhaustion on these outcomes. Implications of the findings are discussed and their future research directions are offered.