| Course | MGT 514 Human Relations Management |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 2 |
| Paper type | MBA reflective analysis |
| Length | About 1,039 words, 6 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Aspen University |
| Program | Master of Business Administration |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for MGT 514 Module 2
Smiling at the Puppy, Then Holding the Door for a Grieving Family: Emotional Labor at a Veterinary Front Desk
Student Name
Master of Business Administration, Aspen University
MGT 514: Human Relations Management
Instructor Name
Month Day, Year
Smiling at the Puppy, Then Holding the Door for a Grieving Family: Emotional Labor at a Veterinary Front Desk
I coordinate the front desk at Oak City Animal Hospital, a composite general and emergency veterinary practice in Raleigh, North Carolina. Our team of five checks in about 90 appointments a day, answers phones, handles payments and manages records. Most visits are routine: vaccines, dental cleanings, limping dogs. But two or three times a day, a family arrives to say goodbye to a pet. I may check in a bouncing puppy for its first shots and, three minutes later, walk a family carrying an elderly dog to our quiet room. In between, clients upset about estimates may raise their voices. I have worked here four years and love the work, but some days leave me exhausted in a way I could not explain until this course.
Emotional Labor
Grandey (2000) used the term emotional labor for the work of shaping what one feels and shows so that it fits what a job expects. Drawing on earlier work, she distinguished surface acting, changing outward expressions without changing inner feelings, from deep acting, changing the feelings themselves, for example by thinking about a situation differently. Surface acting, which creates a gap between what one feels and shows, was linked to greater exhaustion; deep acting was less draining. Front desk work in a veterinary hospital is emotional labor at its most varied: cheerful, calm, sympathetic and firm, sometimes within minutes.
How Emotions Can Be Regulated
Gross (1998) proposed a process model of emotion regulation. Strategies can act early, before an emotion fully forms, such as choosing or changing situations, redirecting attention or reappraising what a situation means. Or they can act late, after the emotion has formed, such as suppressing its expression. Reappraisal tends to reduce both the felt emotion and its physical toll, while suppression hides the expression but leaves the feeling, and can strain memory and relationships.
Five Difficult Moments
| Moment | What I did | Strategy | Better option |
|---|---|---|---|
| Client yells about a $1,400 estimate | Smiled and repeated policy | Surface acting, suppression | Reappraise: fear about the pet, not anger at me; acknowledge the fear |
| Family arrives for euthanasia during a busy check-in | Rushed them to the quiet room | Suppression | Pause briefly, greet them by name, slow down |
| Puppy visit right after euthanasia | Forced a cheerful voice | Surface acting | Thirty-second reset before the next greeting |
| Coworker cries at the desk | Covered phones, said nothing | Avoidance | Brief check-in after the rush |
| Long-time client's dog dies unexpectedly | Held back tears at the desk | Suppression | Step away; let a colleague cover |
The Team's Experience
I am not the only one at the desk carrying this. Two of our five front desk staff left last year, and both mentioned burnout from euthanasia days. When I asked my current coworkers, all four said they handled grief appointments mostly by holding feelings in until their shift ended. Our practice has invested in training veterinarians and technicians for these appointments but never the front desk, though we are the first and last people families see. That gap is a practice-level problem, not only a personal one.
Values in Conflict
Sometimes my values pull against each other. Kindness says to sit with a family who wants to talk; fairness to other clients says to keep the line moving. Neither is wrong. Recognizing the conflict, rather than feeling guilty whichever way I choose, has made those moments easier. A simple rule helps: grieving families get my full attention for the first minute, and a colleague takes the next check-in.
Attitudes and Performance
Judge et al. (2001) combined studies of the relationship between job satisfaction and job performance and found a moderate positive correlation, stronger in complex jobs. On days when I leave drained and resentful, I notice I am shorter with clients and less patient with new staff. How I feel about the job and how well I do it are connected, for me and for the team.
How It Shows Up After Work
The cost of surface acting does not stay at the desk. On days with several grief appointments and angry clients, I come home too tired to cook and short with my partner. On days when I could talk with a coworker after a hard moment, I leave tired but not drained. Grandey's distinction describes the difference between those days better than anything I had read before this course.
What I Value
My values explain why the work matters to me: kindness to animals and the people who love them. Reappraisal works best when it connects to these values. Remembering that an angry client is frightened for a pet turns irritation into sympathy that I do not have to fake.
What the Practice Could Change
Some solutions belong to the practice. Grief appointments could be checked in by a technician at a side entrance, so families do not wait in a lobby full of puppies. Payment for euthanasia could be handled before the day, by phone, so no one is asked for a credit card while crying. These changes, which several veterinary practices already use, reduce the emotional switching the front desk must do and show families care.
A Plan
I will use a thirty-second reset between difficult and routine appointments: three slow breaths and a glance at the next patient's name. I will practice reappraising angry clients as worried. I will ask the practice manager to schedule euthanasias in the last hour of morning or afternoon blocks when possible, a situation change. And I will propose a monthly fifteen-minute debrief for the front desk team.
Checking Whether It Works
In three months, I will compare how I feel at the end of shifts, using a simple one-to-five rating I will record each evening, with my ratings from the past two weeks. I will also ask the practice manager whether client complaints about the front desk have changed and whether the team's debriefs are being used.
Conclusion
Grandey's research explains why my days felt exhausting: I was surface acting through emotions I suppressed. Gross's model offers healthier strategies that act earlier, and Judge and colleagues' findings show why this matters for performance. My plan replaces hiding with reframing and support.
References
Grandey, A. A. (2000). Emotional regulation in the workplace: A new way to conceptualize emotional labor. Journal of Occupational Health Psychology, 5(1), 95-110. https://doi.org/10.1037/1076-8998.5.1.95
Gross, J. J. (1998). The emerging field of emotion regulation: An integrative review. Review of General Psychology, 2(3), 271-299. https://doi.org/10.1037/1089-2680.2.3.271
Judge, T. A., Thoresen, C. J., Bono, J. E., & Patton, G. K. (2001). The job satisfaction-job performance relationship: A qualitative and quantitative review. Psychological Bulletin, 127(3), 376-407. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.127.3.376
What the MGT 514 Module 2 instructions ask for
Module 2 of Aspen's MGT 514 deals with attitudes, values and emotions at work and how they shape relationships and performance. A paper for this module usually applies research to the writer's own work experience. Use your classroom's Module 2 directions; the example examines one front desk job. Describe the emotional demands of a job, with examples of specific moments. Explain research on emotional labor and on how people regulate emotions, noting which strategies cost more. Examine specific situations and the strategies used, and what each cost you afterward. Connect attitudes such as job satisfaction to performance and relationships. Set a plan for managing emotions in healthier ways, including support from others and changes the employer could make.
How the MGT 514 Module 2 example is put together
The writer coordinates the front desk at Oak City Animal Hospital, where about 90 appointments a day include two or three euthanasias. Grandey's Journal of Occupational Health Psychology article defined emotional labor and found surface acting, faking displayed emotions, more draining than deep acting, changing felt emotions. Gross's Review of General Psychology article separated antecedent-focused regulation, such as reappraisal, from response-focused regulation, such as suppression. Judge and colleagues' Psychological Bulletin meta-analysis found a moderate relationship between job satisfaction and job performance. A table lists five moments, from a client yelling about a bill to a family leaving without their dog, with the strategy used and a better one. The plan uses a short reset routine between appointments, reappraisal of angry clients as frightened and a monthly debrief with the practice manager.
MGT 514 Module 2 rubric: what earns full marks
Papers on emotions at work are graded on applying research to specific situations, distinguishing strategies accurately and setting a realistic plan. This example examines particular moments rather than general feelings. Grandey's distinction between surface and deep acting explains why some days are more draining. Gross's model gives practical alternatives to suppression that can be used in the moment at a busy desk. Judge and colleagues' research connects how the writer feels to how the team performs, and the paper looks beyond the writer to the whole front desk team. The table and plan make the reflection usable.
Common MGT 514 Module 2 mistakes, and how to avoid them
Emotion papers often describe feelings in general without examining specific moments or strategies. Choose situations and analyze what you did with your emotions. Another weakness is confusing emotional labor with stress; explain the difference. Use research on regulation strategies, since some are healthier than others. Connect feelings to relationships and performance. Avoid suggesting that emotions should simply be hidden, since research links hiding them to exhaustion. Include support from others in the plan. Finally, keep the reflection professional and specific. Look at whether coworkers face the same demands, since some solutions belong to the whole team.
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This paper is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Aspen University document. Read it for the moves, then write your own to the instructions in your classroom. If you want one built to your exact prompt and rubric, the first custom sample is free and arrives in 24 to 48 hours.
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MGT 514 Module 2 questions, answered
What does MGT 514 Module 2 usually ask for?
Aspen's MGT 514 covers attitudes, values and emotions in this module, so an MBA paper applying research to the writer's own work is typical. Look at your classroom prompt.
What is emotional labor?
Grandey's term for managing feelings and expressions to meet a job's emotional requirements, as in service work.
What is the difference between surface and deep acting?
Surface acting changes only displayed emotion while feelings stay the same; deep acting changes the felt emotion itself. Surface acting is generally more draining.
Where can I find a free MGT 514 Module 2 sample paper?
The example above examines emotional labor at a veterinary front desk and sets a plan for healthier emotion regulation.
Does job satisfaction affect performance?
Judge, Thoresen, Bono and Patton found a moderate positive relationship between job satisfaction and job performance across many studies.