The emotions of control: A qualitative exploration of environmental regulation

Processes of control remain central to managerial and critical theories of organization, but their inherently emotional form has been largely neglecte d. The experience and expression of emotions are more than simply objects a nd outcomes of control, they also shape its context, processes, and consequ ences. Drawing upon observations of interpersonal encounters between enviro nmental regulatory inspectors and industrial managers in the U.K., an emoti onal framing of the dynamics of control Is developed. This presents emotion as a condition and consequence of interacting socioeconomic roles and powe r structures such as those associated with occupations, gender, and capital ism. It also provides a way of analyzing control that is sensitive to its e motional characteristics and may be applied to other, more conventional con trol contexts.