Abstract

Current research suggests that clients devalue semi-skilled care workers’ substantive knowledge and compel these workers to provide emotional intimacy. I refer to this characterization of care workers’ expertise and labor as from the heart knowledge and care. In this study, I evaluate if clients expect highly-skilled care workers with professional degrees to provide from the heart knowledge and care, too. I conducted qualitative interviews to examine clients’ expectations for their relationships with care professionals. While other studies suggest that clients devalue emotional intimacy cultivated by workers who they perceive as having few work skills, the clients in my study valued—and often rewarded—emotional intimacy cultivated by workers who they perceived as highly-skilled. I explore the limits of Zelizer’s conceptualization of the “connected lives” approach by highlighting the link between status and worker-client relationships.

摘要

目前的研究表明，客户贬低了半熟练护理人员的实质性知识，并迫使这些工人提供情感上的亲密。我将护理人员的专业知识和劳动的这种表征称为发自内心的知识和护理。在这项研究中，我评价如果客户希望高技能的保健工作者与专业度，提供从心脏知识和关怀也是如此。我进行了定性访谈，以检查客户对他们与护理专业人员的关系的期望。虽然其他研究表明客户贬低了他们认为工作技能很少的工人培养的情感亲密，但我研究中的客户重视——并且经常奖励——他们认为高技能的工人培养的情感亲密。我通过强调地位和员工-客户关系之间的联系来探索 Zelizer 对“互联生活”方法概念化的局限性。