CHAPTER 16
Relationships, fairness
and trust
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
Relationships in organizations
• Formal relationships - determined by roles and
include:
– authority relationships
– workflow connections and task interdependencies
– peer relationships in formal groups and units, and
communication linkages
• Informal relationships – include:
– personal relationships among friends and
acquaintances
– informal relationships due to physical proximity
– joint membership in informal groups
– sources of repeated interactions
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
Relationships in organizations
• Relationships - important conduits of information and meaning
in organizations
• Close relationships can increase the psychological safety and
the flow of information - benefits learning for the individuals
and organization
• Social support and positive relationships at work can improve
functioning of cardiovascular, immune, and hormone systems
• Positive social interactions increase physiological
resourcefulness and physical health, which increase work
engagement and hasten recovery from work-related strain
and stress
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
Relationships in organizations
• Poor and conflictual relationships - negative
implications include:
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anxiety and stress,
reduced communication quality and quantity,
reduced information processing,
task distraction and
attitudinal changes including lower satisfaction
and commitment
• Poor relationships can impede performance
at individual, group and organizational levels
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
SOCIAL EXCHANGE THEORIES
Common basic elements include:
– the exchange rules and norms that determine
interactions and
– the obligations that arise from them for each
partner,
– the currency of exchange (i.e., the nature of
the resources passed between the partners),
and
– the relationships that emerge between and
among exchange partners
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
SOCIAL EXCHANGE THEORIES
• Classic contributions regard interpersonal
relationships as exchanges in which each
actor engages to maximize the value they
receive
• Value can differ on the dimension of:
– tangible (e.g., goods)
– intangible (e.g., status)
– objectively and generally valuable (e.g.,
money)
– subjectively and person-specifically valuable
(e.g., love and affection)
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
SOCIAL EXCHANGE THEORIES
• Value from relationship behaviour can be
derived from a range of sources, including:
– normative (e.g., acting based on internalized
social norms),
– value-expressive (e.g., acting to display an
aspirational self-image), and
– affiliative, intrinsic and emotional (e.g., the
feelings of contentment and joy from
interacting with a partner)
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
SOCIAL EXCHANGE THEORIES
• Behaviour is influenced by rational considerations
such as:
– rewards and costs, and by
– principles of rewards and punishment
– over time many interactions within relationships become
ritualistic and often automatic
• Exchange based relationships endure over time only if
there is positive value accruing to all partners
• Thus, social exchange theory is in line with an
Rational Choice Theory - describes human behaviour
as driven by self-interest based on hedonistic (i.e.,
value-maximization) principles
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
SOCIAL EXCHANGE THEORIES
• Networking - the deliberate cultivation of
positive relationships with individuals that
may be helpful in direct exchanges or
indirectly through their links to third parties
• One use of social exchange theory is
game theory - mathematical approaches
to describe and analyze the interactions
among parties – a classic example is the
prisoner’s dilemma
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
The prisoner’s dilemma
Figure 16.1
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
MANAGING RELATIONSHIPS IN
ORGANIZATIONS
• People tend to like other people that are:
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similar to them in beliefs and interests
that are skilled and competent in some way
that have admirable characteristics or qualities
that like them in return
• Based on social exchange theory - people like those
who provide them with maximum reward at minimum
cost
• In organizations, relationships are not purely
determined by liking – and are often:
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more instrumental
less discretionary
more externally determined
more situation
dependent
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
MANAGING RELATIONSHIPS IN
ORGANIZATIONS
• Many relationships in organizations exist
between individuals of different authority
levels
• Both national and organizational culture
can impact on intra-organizational
relationships
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
Activities that help to build and
maintain relationships (1)
In general, the activities that help to build and maintain relationships include
supportive, appreciative, informative, inclusive, empowering, validating and
respectful behaviours. Therefore:
• Invite input in appropriate forms and at appropriate times
• Show acceptance and validate at least some aspects of suggestions and
opinions
• Be direct and honest yet polite and courteous
• Act friendly and show patience
• Be considerate of specific needs, interests, and circumstances
• Take the other’s emotional state into account (e.g., fear, anxiety,
excitement)
• Show your willingness to consider the other’s perspective
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
Activities that help to build and
maintain relationships (2)
• Offer assistance with work when needed and appropriate
• Avoid making decision that take responsibility away from the other
• Keep an appropriate information flow that informs without
overwhelming
• Show confidence in the other’s abilities
• Remember personal details regarding the person
• Acknowledge all contributions and accomplishments
• Provide autonomy, challenge and support in balanced ways
• Validate the other’s identity and help maintain their sense of
personal worth and importance
• Act respectful at all times
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
Relationships
• Toxic relationships – unproductive,
counterproductive or even harmful
relationships
• Assertiveness - a process of
interpersonal communication that is
respectful of both one’s own and the other
party’s needs, rights and interests
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
Assertiveness
Assertive can address interpersonal and relationship
problems because they (Bolton, 1979):
– increase the probability that the other will alter the
troublesome behaviour because they avoid reactance
and defensiveness
– are unlikely to violate the other person’s integrity or
lower their self-esteem;
– if planned and executed well contain a low risk of
further damaging the relationship
– express concern about the relationship and can help
increase the other’s motivation to change
– limit the further intensification of the problem and
prevent defensiveness to escalate to destructive
levels
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
The three-part assertive
message
Table 16.1
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
The six steps of using assertive messages to address
relationship problems
Table 16.2
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
Advocacy and Inquiry
• Advocacy - a process of undogmatic assertion that
invites constructive engagement with the factual basis
and logical argument supporting the assertion
• Inquiry - a process of dialogue that constructively
challenges others’ views by refocusing on facts and
reasoning
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
Advocacy and Inquiry
Table 16.3
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
THE PSYCHOLOGICAL CONTRACT
• Psychological contract - the individual beliefs about
the terms of the mutual exchange agreement between
the individual and their organization
• Even well-meaning, legitimate behaviour by managers
can violate individuals’ understanding of the
psychological contract
• Violations can lead to profound behavioural, cognitive
and emotional reactions
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
THE PSYCHOLOGICAL CONTRACT
• Research indicates that violation can lead to:
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higher turnover and absenteeism
lower job satisfaction
increased cynicism
lower organizational citizenship behaviour
lower perceived support
Reduced trust in the organization
• Violations can be addressed in a number of ways:
– that range from actual changes in the benefits and
working conditions provided by the organization
– justifying and reframing perceived shortcomings
– interventions aimed at changing subjective
expectations
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
Organizational justice
• Organizational justice - employees’ fairness
perceptions regarding their work and conditions of
employment and their behavioural reactions to this
• A four-dimensional conception of OJ :
– Distributive justice is concerned with individuals’
perceptions of the fairness of outcomes.
– Procedural justice is concerned with the perceived
fairness of the processes by which decisions are
made.
– Interactional justice is concerned with the fairness
perceptions of the quality of interpersonal treatment
– Informational justice is concerned with the fairness
perceptions of information received
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
Organizational justice
Figure 16.2
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
Leventhal’s criteria of procedural
fairness
Table 16.4
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
TRUST IN ORGANIZATIONS
• Trust - the degree to which a person is
prepared to make themselves vulnerable
to another person despite uncertainty
about the other’s possible actions
• A three-stage model trust development:
– The first stage is deterrence-based trust
– The second stage is knowledge-based trust
– The third stage is Identification-based trust
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
Determinants of trust
Figure 16.3
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
TRUST IN ORGANIZATIONS
• Miller and Bedford (2003) suggest a five step process as
the way to (re-)establish trust at a company level:
• Identify the core values
• Bring the core values to life
• Spell out the do and don’t aspects of each value
• Weave values into the fabric of the organization
• Ensure accountability and model the way
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
Bilateral model of trust repair
Figure 16.4
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
RESTORING TRUST
• Substantive penance - includes the transfer of valuable
resources in reparation for the violation
• voluntary hostage posting - involves providing
decision control over valuable resources of the trustee to
the trustor
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning
Repairing broken trust
Table 16.5
For use with Organizational Behaviour and Management
by John Martin and Martin Fellenz
1408018128© 2010 Cengage Learning