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Psicothema was founded in Asturias (northern Spain) in 1989, and is published jointly by the Psychology Faculty of the University of Oviedo and the Psychological Association of the Principality of Asturias (Colegio Oficial de Psicólogos del Principado de Asturias).
We currently publish four issues per year, which accounts for some 100 articles annually. We admit work from both the basic and applied research fields, and from all areas of Psychology, all manuscripts being anonymously reviewed prior to publication.

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  • Director: Laura E. Gómez Sánchez
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Development and cross-national validation of the Emotional Effort Scale (EEF)

Cristina Quiñones-García1, Raquel Rodríguez-Carvajal2, Nicholas Clarke3 and Bernardo Moreno-Jiménez2

1 University of Northampton,
2 Universidad Autónoma de Madrid and
3 University of Southampton

Background: Researchers define Emotional Labour (EL) as the effort associated with meeting the emotional requirements of the job, yet nobody has ever directly tested this effort. Building on classic stress and ego depletion theory, this study develops the Emotional Effort Scale (EEF). Methods: In Study 1, exploratory (N = 197) and confirmatory factor analysis (N = 182) were conducted with a British sample. In Study 2, the instrument was adapted to Spanish and measurement invariance was tested (N = 304). In Study 3, (N = 185), we tested convergent and divergent validity with the EL strategies (i.e., surface acting and deep acting) and the relationship between EEF and emotional exhaustion. Results: The final scale is a two-dimensional measure (explicit and implicit emotional effort) with good reliability levels in all samples (N = 818). Additionally, it shows adequate convergent, divergent and nomological validity. Conclusions: The Emotional Effort construct adds unique value to the literature. Thus, explicit effort seems to be the mechanism that explains the association between EL and exhaustion. Additionally, this study adapts and translates the measure to two of the most used languages in the world, enabling the emergence of cross-national studies in the field of emotions at work.

Desarrollo y validación trasnacional de la Escala de Esfuerzo Emocional (EEF). Antecedentes: la literatura define el Trabajo Emocional como el esfuerzo asociado al cumplimiento de las reglas de expresión emocional del puesto; sin embargo, este esfuerzo no ha sido medido aún. Desde la teoría transaccional de estrés y la ego depletion theory desarrollamos la Escala del Esfuerzo Emocional (EEF). Método: en el Estudio 1 se condujeron análisis factoriales exploratorios (N = 197) y confirmatorios (N = 182) en muestras británicas. En el Estudio 2 la escala se adaptó al español y se realizaron análisis de invarianza (N = 304). En el Estudio 3 (N = 185) se examinó la validez convergente y divergente de la escala con las estrategias de trabajo emocional (i.e., actuación superficial y profunda), y se estudió la relación entre el esfuerzo y el cansancio emocional. Resultados: la escala final tiene dos factores (explícito e implícito) y buenos niveles de fiabilidad en todas las muestras (N = 818). Además, presenta adecuada validez convergente, divergente y nomológica. Conclusiones: el constructo del esfuerzo emocional contribuye de manera notable a la literatura, y parece ser el mecanismo que explica la relación entre el trabajo y el cansancio emocional. Además, el instrumento se ha validado en dos de las lenguas más usadas en el mundo, permitiendo el desarrollo de futuros estudios trasnacionales.

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Impact factor 2022:  JCR WOS 2022:  FI = 3.6 (Q2);  JCI = 1.21 (Q1) / SCOPUS 2022:  SJR = 1.097;  CiteScore = 6.4 (Q1)