Keep Your "N" In Check: African American Women and The Interactive Effects of Etiquette and Emotional Labor.

Within the workplace, professional etiquette is a major ingredient in decision-making about an individual's work space, location, integration, acceptance, and occupational mobility. Who we are dictates where we fit and how we are received. These sentiments and behavioral expectations act as directives position, which frame our ways of participating in society. For African American women, these informal and formal proscriptions are vital to their well-being and advancement in the workplace. African American women's desire to be promoted to managerial posts is determined by their relative gain in job rewards, but also by their etiquette, measured by the amount of emotional labor they perform. If they desire a promotion, they ponder if they will receive decision-making responsibilities and authority, prestige, resources, status, pecuniary benefits, and opportunities to continue advancing within their employing organization's hierarchy. These women continue to follow these informal and formal proscriptions, despite their behavior being tied to their emotional labor and advancement. This paper describes African American women's etiquette and emotional labor contests as they work toward advancement into managerial levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]