Emotional Labor in the Academic Library: When Being Friendly Feels Like Work

Although the Guidelines for Behavioral Performance of Reference and Information Services Providers recommend that librarians “welcome the patrons and place them at ease … [and] make the patrons feel comfortable in a situation which may be perceived as intimidating, risky, confusing or overwhelming” (Reference and User Services Association, 2004 Reference and User Services Association.2004Guidelines for behavioral performance of reference and information services providers. http://http://www.ala.org/rusa/resources/guidelines/guidelinesbehavioral (http://http://www.ala.org/rusa/resources/guidelines/guidelinesbehavioral)  [Google Scholar]), our literature provides little exploration of welcoming behavior. To fill this gap, we introduce the concept of emotional labor to the library context, presenting a qualitative analysis of librarians' experiences. In addition, we offer recommendations to help librarians manage the emotional aspects of work and discuss implications of librarianship's changing emotional demands.