Excluded from exchange: how social exchange theory privileges men leaders

Social exchange theory has become synonymous with leadership research seeking to explain why positive leader behaviors elicit positive follower behavior. This is based on an argument that when leaders display positive behaviors to the followers, followers reciprocate in return due to feelings of obligation. Yet, leadership research continuously overlooks how gender role expectations may influence followers’ perceptions of leader behavior. Given its widespread use within leadership research, and organizational studies more broadly, such oversight may negatively influence the fields progression. Against this backdrop, this study examines how gender (dichotomized due to the sample as women or men) differences in helping expectations may disrupt leader-follower social exchange relationships. Drawing on data from a multi time-point survey (n = 171), we hypothesize and find that men leaders who engage in helping behaviors elicit follower reciprocation in the form of felt obligation and task helping, but not women leaders. Our findings illuminate how organizational research reliance on older theories may be insufficient to understand today’s workforce and highlight the need to reimagine existing theoretical frameworks within leadership research for a more inclusive workforce.