The effect of emotional clarity and attention to emotion on job satisfaction: A mediating role of emotion regulation among Chinese medical staff

The present study examined the relationships among attention to emotion, emotional clarity, emotion regulation, and job satisfaction, and tested whether the plausible associations between emotional processes (e.g., attention to emotion, emotional clarity) and job satisfaction can be mediated by emotion regulation in a sample of Chinese medical staff. In total, 1,766 medical staff in Guangdong province completed questionnaires including the demographics, the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire, Emotional Clarity, Attention to Emotion, and the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire. Results showed significant direct effect of emotional clarity, but not attention to emotion on job satisfaction. Cognitive reappraisal significantly mediated the associations between emotional processes (e.g., attention to emotion, emotional clarity) and job satisfaction whereas expressive suppression was not a statistically significant mediator. These results suggest that attention to emotion and emotional clarity contribute to job satisfaction by increasing certain emotion regulation strategies such as reappraisal. Intervention or medical education programs targeting enhancing emotional clarity and reappraisal may be beneficial for increasing job satisfaction of medical staff in China.