Emotions in context: the marginalisation and persistence of emotional labour in probation

In this chapter we explore and synthesise the limited extant research on the performance of emotional labour by probation practitioners. We explore the history of emotions in probation at both the level of policy and practice, arguing that whilst emotion management has always been a core facet of probation work its importance has not been fully acknowledged. Indeed, we argue that recent years has seen a marked marginalisation of emotions in policy terms due to the changing nature of what probation is ‘for’ and how its main purpose- the rehabilitative endeavour – is legitimated in late modernity. We then provide an overview of the – albeit limited – recent research which has explored probation practice through the lens of emotional labour, exploring what emotions are managed, to what end and how this impacts on probation workers.