The Emotional Labor of Group Projects

Group projects are supposed to teach us about collaboration, communication, and teamwork — essential skills for life beyond the classroom. But for many, they become a source of stress, frustration, and exhaustion. It’s not just about dividing tasks and completing assignments; it’s about managing personalities, navigating conflicts, and shouldering invisible responsibilities.

This is the often-overlooked aspect of group projects: the emotional labor that some members inevitably take on, whether they want to or not.

While the academic work gets graded, the emotional labor — the effort to mediate conflicts, maintain group harmony, and ensure accountability — goes unnoticed and unrewarded. Let’s unpack what the emotional labor of group projects really looks like and why it matters.

What Is Emotional Labor in Group Projects?
Emotional labor refers to the unseen, unpaid work of managing emotions, maintaining harmony, and navigating social dynamics. In group projects, it often falls on one or two members to:

Mediate Conflicts: Resolving disagreements, calming tensions, and preventing arguments from derailing the project.

Coordinate Communication: Sending reminders, checking in with unresponsive members, and ensuring everyone stays on track.

Motivate and Support: Encouraging participation, reassuring anxious members, and managing group morale.

Take Responsibility for Others’ Work: Picking up the slack for those who miss deadlines or contribute subpar work to avoid penalizing the entire group.

This work is not officially assigned, but it is expected and necessary to keep the group functioning. And those who take it on often do so without acknowledgment, credit, or compensation.

Who Bears the Emotional Labor?
Emotional labor in group projects is rarely distributed equally. Certain members are more likely to shoulder it, whether by choice, personality, or group dynamics.

The Natural Leaders: Those who naturally step up to keep the group organized, set deadlines, and delegate tasks. They often become the de facto project manager — without asking for the role.

The People-Pleasers: Those who can’t stand conflict and volunteer to mediate disagreements, even when it’s not their responsibility.

The Perfectionists: Those who fear the impact of poor work on their grades and end up redoing others’ work to maintain quality.

The Empathetic Members: Those who feel obligated to check in on quiet or struggling members, ensuring they’re not left behind.

While these roles may seem helpful or even necessary, they can lead to resentment, burnout, and frustration, especially when the work goes unrecognized.

The Impact of Emotional Labor in Group Projects
Increased Stress and Burnout
Taking on the role of project manager, mediator, or motivator adds an extra layer of responsibility — one that is often unaccounted for in the grading rubric.

This added workload can lead to mental and emotional exhaustion, especially when deadlines loom, and group members are unresponsive or uncooperative.

The person carrying the emotional labor often feels trapped between maintaining group harmony and advocating for fairness, a stressful balancing act.

Unbalanced Work Distribution
When certain members shoulder the emotional labor, they end up doing more than their fair share, not just emotionally but academically.

They may spend extra hours rewriting sloppy sections, following up with disengaged members, or clarifying instructions.

This unbalanced dynamic creates resentment and frustration, especially when all members receive the same grade, regardless of contribution.

Emotional Toll and Resentment
Emotional labor is not just about managing tasks; it’s about managing feelings — both one’s own and others’.

Members who take on this work often feel unappreciated or taken advantage of, especially when others fail to acknowledge their efforts.

Over time, this can lead to resentment, as they question why they’re the only ones doing the behind-the-scenes work to keep the project on track.

How to Manage Emotional Labor in Group Projects
Acknowledge the Work
Before the project begins, have an open discussion about roles, responsibilities, and potential challenges.

Assign a designated project manager whose job includes coordinating communication, setting deadlines, and checking in with members.

Acknowledge emotional labor as a legitimate form of work, and include it in the group’s task list.

Establish Clear Communication
Miscommunication is a major source of conflict and frustration in group projects. To prevent misunderstandings:

Use a centralized communication platform (e.g., Slack, WhatsApp, or email) where all group members can stay updated and contribute.

Set up regular check-ins to assess progress, address concerns, and redistribute tasks if necessary.

Set Boundaries and Limits
If you find yourself shouldering too much emotional labor, it’s essential to set boundaries:

If a member is consistently missing deadlines or contributing subpar work, address it directly and assertively.

Communicate your limits: “I can help with editing, but I can’t redo entire sections.”

Delegate responsibilities to ensure that everyone is contributing fairly and that no one person is left carrying the weight of the project.

Document Contributions and Effort
When grades are assigned collectively, it’s easy for some members to take credit for work they didn’t do.

Keep a record of who did what, including emotional labor tasks like organizing meetings, sending reminders, or mediating conflicts.

If the project includes a peer evaluation component, highlight both academic and emotional contributions, emphasizing the behind-the-scenes work that often goes unnoticed.

Normalize Open Discussions About Emotional Labor
Emotional labor is often invisible, but it doesn’t have to be. Bring it into the conversation:

Before starting the project, discuss potential challenges, including communication breakdowns, conflicts, or uneven work distribution.

Revisit the discussion periodically to assess how the group is functioning and redistribute responsibilities if necessary.

What I Learned From Managing Emotional Labor in Group Projects
When I first started taking on emotional labor in group projects, I thought it was just part of being a “good group member.” I sent reminders, organized meetings, smoothed over conflicts, and even redid sections of work to maintain quality — all while feeling increasingly resentful and exhausted.

It wasn’t until I started acknowledging the emotional work I was doing and setting boundaries that I realized how much time and energy it was costing me. I learned that emotional labor is work, even if it’s unpaid, uncredited, and unseen.

I also learned that I didn’t have to carry it alone. By openly discussing roles and responsibilities, advocating for fair contributions, and documenting my efforts, I was able to protect my time and mental well-being without sacrificing the quality of the project.

The Takeaway: Emotional Labor Is Real Work — Acknowledge It
Group projects are about more than dividing tasks and submitting a final product. They’re about managing dynamics, mediating conflicts, and ensuring accountability — all forms of emotional labor that often go unnoticed and unappreciated.

In a world where collaboration is increasingly valued, it’s time to recognize, validate, and distribute emotional labor more fairly. It’s not just about who wrote the report or designed the slides; it’s about who kept the group functioning, who maintained morale, and who took on the invisible work of ensuring the project stayed on track.

Because in the end, effective collaboration isn’t just about what gets done — it’s about how it gets done and who carried the weight along the way.