Title: Co-worker relationship quality: the role of commitment and trust in China

Authors: Sven Horak; Andreas Klein; Henning Ahlf; Bindu Arya; Shiming Xia

Addresses: The Peter J. Tobin College of Business, Department of Management, St. John's University, New York, USA ' Faculty of Healthcare, Niederrhein University of Applied Sciences, Krefeld, Germany ' Faculty of Communication and Information Systems, Westphalian University of Applied Sciences, Gelsenkirchen, Germany ' College of Business Administration, University of Missouri-St. Louis, St. Louis, Missouri, USA ' The Graduate School of Policy and Management, Doshisha University, Kyoto, Japan

Abstract: We utilise social exchange theory to investigate how interpersonal factors like trust and commitment influence co-worker relationship quality among a group of 346 Chinese white-collar employees. Our findings suggest that co-worker commitment positively influences co-worker relationship quality. Contrary to our expectations, there is no indication that co-worker trust directly affects co-worker relationship quality. Our findings suggest that commitment, rather than trust, plays a dominant role in co-worker relationship quality in the workplace in China. Further, stronger affective relationships between co-workers have a positive influence on trust and communication. We suggest that co-worker commitment is the central construct contributing to better co-worker relationships, triggered by affective ties, trust and interpersonal communication. Our study seeks to contribute to the further development of social exchange theory by drawing attention to the social exchange context. To explore the role exchange context plays on co-worker relationships, we recommend future research be designed to enable cross-cultural exploration.

Keywords: social exchange theory; co-worker relationship quality; trust; affective ties; commitment; interpersonal communication; guanxi; China.

DOI: 10.1504/EJIM.2024.138413

European Journal of International Management, 2024 Vol.23 No.1, pp.31 - 59

Received: 23 Jun 2022
Accepted: 21 Oct 2022
Published online: 03 May 2024 *

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