The Relationship between Consumer Unethical Behaviors and Employee's Emotional Exhaustion: A Moderated Mediation Model

Although accumulating studies have documented the detrimental effect of consumer unethical behavioral directed toward employees on employees' emotional exhaustion, few empirical studies have explored whether consumers unethical behavior that are not employee directed( CUB) also has detrimental influence on employees' emotional exhaustion. Based on deontological ethics, this study has developed a moderated mediation model that links employees 'perception of CUB and their emotional exhaustion.In our model,we assumed that the relationship between CUB and emotion exhaustion was mediated by emotion suppression and moderated by moral identity. Results from a sample of 198 salesperson demonstrated that salesperson 's perception of CUB was positively related to their emotional exhaustion while controlling consumers ' mistreat directed toward them,and the effect of CUB on emotional exhaustion was moderated by moral identity such that the relationship was weaker for individuals with high moral identity than for individuals with low moral identity.Consisted with hypothesized moderated mediation model,the effect of employees' perception of CUB on emotional exhaustion was mediated by emotion suppression partially. Moreover,the mediating effect of emotion suppression was moderated by moral identity,in that the indirect effect of employees' perception of CUB on emotional exhaustion through emotion suppression was significant among individuals with high moral identity but not among individuals with low moral identity. Implications of these findings,limitations,and future research directions were also provided.