Social Exchange in Organizations: Perceived Organizational Support, Leader-Member Exchange, and Employee Reciprocity

Social exchange (P. Blau, 1964) and the norm of reciprocity (A. W. Gouldner, 1960) have been used to explain the relationship of perceived organizational support and leader-member exchange with employee attitudes and behavior. Recent empirical research suggests that individuals engage in different reciprocation efforts depending on the exchange partner (e.g., B. L. McNeely & B. M. Meglino, 1994). The purpose of the present study was to further investigate these relationships by examining the relative contribution of indicators of employee-organization exchange and subordinate-supervisor exchange. Structural equation modeling was used to compare nested models. Results indicate that perceived organizational support is associated with organizational commitment, whereas leader-member exchange is associated with citizenship and in-role behavior.