Leader-member exchange (LMX) is the foremost dyadic theory in the leadership literature. Whereas contemporary leadership theories such as transformational, servant, or authentic leadership theories focus on the effects of leader behaviors on employee attitudes, motivation, and team outcomes, relational leadership theory views the dyadic relationship quality between leaders and members as the key to understanding leader effects on members, teams, and organizations. This approach views trust- and respect-based relationships as the cornerstone of leadership. LMX has grown from a new theory in the 1970s to a mature area of research in 2015. Interest in this theory has increased rapidly over the past four decades, and the pace of research in this area continues to accelerate dramatically. The Oxford Handbook of Leader-Member Exchange takes stock of the literature to examine its roots, what is currently known, what research gaps may exist, and what areas are in need of the most urgent research.

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It is hard to overstate the importance of the leader-member exchange relationship. Employees who share a high-quality relationship with their leader are more likely to earn a higher salary, climb the ranks more quickly, and report higher life satisfaction levels than their peers who have a less copasetic leader-member relationship. While Leader-Member Exchange Theory (LMX) research addresses the impact that the leader-member relationship has on the individual employee experience, much of this scholarship overlooks or obscures the vital role that communication plays in the development and maintenance of workgroup relationships. Much of extant literature also glosses over the role that communication plays in workgroup collaboration. Using a communicative lens, this text illustrates the complex theoretical underpinnings of LMX theory, such as the importance of social interaction and relationship building and maintenance necessary to achieve organizational goals. We explore how an employee’s relationship with their leader also shapes their peer relationships and their overall standing within their workgroup. Further, the text examines the potential dark side of LMX theory, such as the tendency towards demographic and trait and state similarity. Employing a communicative perspective emphasizes the extent of position and personal power both leaders and members have in engineering the quality of the relationship they desire. Integrating and applying once disparate lines of academic literature, this book offers employees, students, and teacher-scholars pragmatic yet research-based insights into developing and maintaining successful, healthy workplace relationships.