Workplace incivility and service delivery: roles of emotional irritation, resilience, and friendship

Purpose This study aims to advance understanding of how low-intensity interpersonal conflict in the form of workplace incivility influences service delivery among frontline hotel employees (FHEs). Anchoring on Affective Events Theory, the study examines emotional irritation as a central emotional response through which uncivil interactions impair service delivery. Recognising that employees differ in how they experience and manage workplace events, the study further investigates psychological resilience as an individual coping resource and workplace friendship as a situational resource that may attenuate the emotional consequences of workplace incivility. Design/methodology/approach To test the hypotheses, 410 data points were collected from FHEs across different locations in India. The study used a multi-phase data-collection method to gather responses. During data analysis, the measurement model was validated, and Process Macros were used to test the hypotheses. Findings The analysis established an inverse link between workplace incivility and service delivery and a positive association between workplace incivility and emotional irritation. A negative relationship between emotional irritation and service delivery was also established. In addition, the study established the role of emotional irritation as a mediator, and that of psychological resilience and workplace friendship as moderators. Practical implications As the Indian hotel sector is characterised by excessive workplace incivility, the study’s findings provide valuable insights for practitioners on the deleterious effects of this incivility on employees’ service delivery. Additionally, the mediating role of emotional irritation and the moderating roles of psychological resilience and workplace friendship established in the study have vital scholarly and managerial implications. The study directs practitioners to use interventions to enhance employees’ psychological resilience and nurture workplace friendships to reduce the deleterious effects of workplace incivility. Originality/value Scholarly pursuits to understand the associations between workplace incivility, emotional irritation and service delivery of FHEs are scarce. To the best of the authors’ understanding, no prior studies have examined emotional irritation as a mediator and psychological resilience and workplace friendship as moderators in the relationship between workplace incivility and its outcomes.