The role of emotional labor in emotion regulation difficulties among social workers in Jordan

Emotions represent essential resources in social work practice; however, difficulties in regulating them remain insufficiently explored, particularly in non-Western contexts. This study aimed to examine emotional labor (EL) strategies and difficulties in emotion regulation (DER) among social workers (SWs) in Jordan. A cross-sectional design was employed using a structured questionnaire administered to a purposive sample of 132 SWs in Amman. The findings indicated that SWs reported relatively low levels of EL strategy use and relatively high levels of DER, particularly in limited access to regulation strategies, impulse control difficulties, non-acceptance of emotional responses, and lack of emotional awareness. A statistically significant negative correlation was found between EL and DER (r = −0.330, p < 0.05), indicating that higher EL is associated with lower difficulties in emotion regulation. EL varied significantly by sex and educational level, with higher levels observed among females and those holding a master's degree. In contrast, DER differed significantly only by sex, with higher levels reported among males, and showed no significant variation across educational level or years of experience. These findings highlight the importance of strengthening emotional labor competencies as a potential mechanism for improving emotion regulation, professional effectiveness, and wellbeing among social workers. The study contributes to extending emotional labor research beyond Western contexts by providing context-specific evidence from Jordan and offering a more nuanced understanding of the relationship between EL and DER within socio-cultural and professional constraints.