<![CDATA[Studies on teachers' psychological dynamics in Indonesia have largely concentrated on general education settings using quantitative measures, leaving the subjective emotional demands of special education teachers underexplored. This study aims to explore special education teachers' lived experiences of emotional labor while supporting students with autism. Using a qualitative approach with Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), six teachers from River Kids Autism Special School in Malang were selected via purposive sampling with a minimum of two years of mentoring experience. Data were gathered through in-depth semi-structured interviews and examined following systematic IPA procedures. The findings identified six superordinate themes: triggering situations, emotional display, emotion regulation, emotional impact, emotional recovery, and meaning of work. Teachers engaged in emotional labor through surface acting and deep acting when navigating tantrums, aggressive behaviors, communication barriers, and professional expectations, which occasionally elicited emotional dissonance and emotional exhaustion. Based on these insights, schools are encouraged to provide structured emotion regulation training, regular peer debriefing spaces, and accessible psychological counseling services to foster educator well-being. ABSTRAK Kajian mengenai dinamika psikologis guru di Indonesia umumnya masih terkonsentrasi pada ranah pendidikan reguler dengan fokus kuantitatif, sehingga penghayatan subjektif kerja emosional guru pendidikan khusus belum banyak terungkap. Penelitian ini bertujuan mengeksplorasi pengalaman emotional labor guru Sekolah Luar Biasa (SLB) dalam mendampingi siswa autisme. Menggunakan pendekatan kualitatif dengan Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), enam guru SLB Autisme River Kids Malang dipilih melalui purposive sampling dengan kriteria minimal dua tahun pengalaman mendampingi siswa autisme. Pengumpulan data dilakukan melalui wawancara semi-terstruktur mendalam dan dianalisis mengikuti prosedur sistematis IPA. Hasil penelitian mengidentifikasi enam tema utama: situasi pemicu, tampilan emosi, regulasi emosi, dampak emosional, pemulihan emosi, dan makna pekerjaan. Para partisipan menjalankan emotional labor melalui strategi surface acting dan deep acting saat berhadapan dengan tantrum, perilaku agresif, hambatan komunikasi, serta ekspektasi profesionalitas yang berisiko memicu emotional dissonance dan emotional exhaustion. Berdasarkan temuan tersebut, disarankan penyelenggaraan pelatihan regulasi emosi terarah, forum debriefing antarguru secara berkala, dan penyediaan layanan konseling psikologis di sekolah untuk mendukung kesejahteraan subjektif pendidik. ]]>
