Do Emotional Intelligence and Academic Persistence Mitigate the Relationship Between Lecturer-Initiated Incivility and Emotional Exhaustion?

Abstract

Supervisor, co-worker, and customer-initiated incivility in the services industry dominate the literature. Incivility studies in academic institutions are beginning to emerge and students’ initiated incivility has taken the center stage, whereas studies on lecturer-initiated incivility are lacking. This study, therefore, seeks to find out the direct and interactive roles of lecturer-initiated incivility, emotional intelligence, and academic persistence on emotional exhaustion among undergraduates. Data were collected from undergraduate students (N = 254) across Alex Ekwueme Federal University, Ndufu-Alike, Nigeria. Moderation analyses showed that both emotional intelligence and academic persistence moderated the relationship between lecturer-initiated incivility and emotional exhaustion. Findings of the study imply that emotional intelligence and academic persistence of students help alleviate emotional exhaustion.