Leader-Member Exchange
LMX theory explains that leaders cannot give equal attention to all their subordinates (Buengeler et al., 2020; Graen & Uhl-Bien, 1995). For this reason, the LMX relationship is very likely to be explained by Social Exchange Theory which emphasizes the reciprocal relationship of individuals with other individuals. (Eichenseer et al., 2020; Jong & Ford, 2020; Thompson et al., 2018). LMX is defined as the quality of the exchange relationship between leaders and members (Graen & Uhl-Bien, 1995; Haggard & Park, 2018; Young et al., 2020). Leaders who treat their subordinates well will be rewarded by their subordinates by increasing their performance and dedicating themselves to work. Lee et al. (2019) explain that the LMX relationship is not only a determinant of employee behavior but also affects followers’ perceptions of the leader and the organization. Leaders foster relationships characterized by trust, liking, respect, and social exchange with several subordinates in their workgroups (Liden & Maslyn, 1998). The LMX relationship is also a more proximal determinant of employee behavior than a measure of leadership style (Lee et al., 2019). In addition, leader support can strengthen subordinates’ commitment to the organization (Audenaert et al., 2020; Khalid, 2020), OCB (Jong & Ford, 2020; Lloyd et al., 2015) psychological safety (Xu et al., 2019), work engagement (Decuypere & Schaufeli, 2020; Rofcanin et al., 2019).