ABSTRACT
Social exchange theory is one of the most influential conceptual frameworks for understanding behaviour in organizations (Cropanzano & Mitchell, 2005) and a dominant theoretical framework to understanding the employee-organization relationship (Coyle-Shapiro & Conway, 2004). The versatility of its explanatory power reaches beyond the employee-organization relationship to include leadership (Liden, Sparrowe & Wayne, 1997), organizational justice (Colquitt, Scott, Rodell, Long, Zapata, Conlon & Wesson, 2013; Rupp, Shao, Jones & Liao, 2014), workplace exclusion (Scott, Restubog & Zagenczyk, 2013) and the impact of the Dark Triad (machiavellianism, narcissism and psychopathy) on work behaviour (O’Boyle, Forsyth, Banks & McDaniel, 2012). A common although not exclusive focus of social exchange theory is to understand relationships, underpinning mechanisms and associated outcomes. In this chapter, we highlight the role of trust in social exchange relationships as it applies to the employee-organization relationship (EOR).
