You Got to Look Right! Mapping the Aesthetics of Labor by Exploring the Research Landscape using Bibliometrics

Abstract

Background: There has been a lot of research interest in ‘aesthetic labor’, especially since 2012. Research has established a strong relationship between aesthetic labor and emotional labor, especially in the service industry. Various constructs have been studied in the context of aesthetic labor, e.g., gender (studies have examined the ways in which gender affects the performance of aesthetic labor and the consequences of gendered expectations for individuals in different professions), body image (aesthetic labor can have significant effects on an individual's body image, as they may feel pressure to conform to certain beauty standards in order to succeed in their profession), self-presentation (studies have examined the relationship between aesthetic labor and self-presentation, including the ways in which individuals may use aesthetic labor to manage their identities), and customer satisfaction (studies have examined the impact of aesthetic labor on customer perceptions of service quality, as well as the ways in which aesthetic labor can be used to improve customer experiences). However, there is a dearth of studies that comprehensively analyze all available literature on aesthetic labor. Therefore, this study aims to bridge this gap. Aims: This study aims to explore the research that appears in the Scopus database and provide a comprehensive review of the literature published on aesthetic labor to find the past and current trends and explore the future scope of research. Objectives: The objectives of this study are to find the most influential articles on ‘aesthetic labor’, explore the spread of research over the years, find the leading sources and countries as far as publications on aesthetic labor are concerned, and investigate the emerging themes in the area of ‘aesthetic labor.’ Methods: The study used VOS viewer to analyze the articles that emerged in the Scopus database by applying the keyword, ‘aesthetic labor’. The search results were restricted to publications in the domains of social sciences, business management and accounting, and psychology, which resulted in 180 articles. Bibliometric analysis (co-occurrence of keywords) was carried out on these 180 publications. Key Results: Work, employment, and society is the leading source for publications. Maximum research in said area has emerged from the United Kingdom, followed by the United States. The themes are the relationship between aesthetic labor and consumption, emotional labor, and gender inequality, emphasizing the need for fair appearance standards and support for employees due to the stress and burnout associated with presenting oneself in a certain way to create a positive customer experience. Intersectionality of discrimination in aesthetic labor, including appearance-based recruitment, emotional exhaustion, and commodification of workers in service industries, negatively impacts their well-being and job satisfaction. The last theme is an adaptation of industry to appeal to male customers and its implications for the gendered nature of aesthetic labor. Conclusion: This study explores important themes that emerged after doing a comprehensive review of the literature published on “aesthetic labor.” Emotional labor discrimination, which is closely associated with aesthetic labor, is the area that has garnered the interest of researchers. However, the education system and the value it assigns to aesthetic labor constitute a further area of inquiry. Understanding how aesthetic labor is perceived and performed in the context of social media, notably photo and video-sharing platforms, is an additional crucial area of study.