Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Workplace Relationships

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science

  • 42 Accesses

Synonyms

Work relationships; Working relations; Workplace connection

Definition

Interpersonal relationships that take place at work, with important implications for the individuals and organizations

Introduction

Workplace relationships are unique interpersonal relationships with important implications for the individuals and organizations. Common relationships in organizational contexts include formal and informal mentoring relationships, leader-follower relationships, supervisor-subordinate relationships, and coworker relationships (Sias 2005).

Workplace relationships may function as decision-making, influence-sharing, and emotional support systems (Kram and Isabella 1985). Effective workplace relationships contribute to the overall well-being of both individuals and organizations by providing sources of social support and career development, increasing commitment, increasing morale, and reducing turnover (Kram and Isabella 1985). These relationships can also lead to aversive...

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Blickle, G., Fröhlich, J. K., Ehlert, S., Pirner, K., Dietl, E., Hanes, T. J., & Ferris, G. R. (2011). Socioanalytic theory and work behavior: Roles of work values and political skill in job performance and promotability assessment. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 78, 136–148.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dose, J. J. (1997). Work values: An integrative framework and illustrative application to organizational socialization. Journal of Occupational and Organizational Psychology, 70, 219–240.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dunbar, R. I. (1998). The social brain hypothesis. Brain, 9, 178–190.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fine, G. A. (1986). Friendships in the work place. In V. Derlega & B. Winstead (Eds.), Friendship and social interaction (pp. 185–206). New York: Springer.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Hogan, R., & Blickle, G. (in press). Socioanalytic theory: Basic concepts, supporting evidence, and practical implications. In V. Zeigler-Hill & T. K. Shackelford (Eds.), The SAGE handbook of personality and individual differences. Thousand Oaks: SAGE.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kram, K. E., & Isabella, L. A. (1985). Mentoring alternatives: The role of peer relationships in career development. Academy of Management Journal, 28, 110–132.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nicholson, N. (2001). Evolved to chat: The new word on gossip. Psychology Today, 34, 41–45.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sias, P. M. (2005). Workplace relationship quality and employee information experiences. Communication Studies, 56, 375–395.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Teboul, J. C., & Cole, T. (2005). Relationship development and workplace integration: An evolutionary perspective. Communication Theory, 15, 389–413.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Universidade Federal do Ceará, Fortaleza, Brazil

    Hilda Costa

Authors
  1. Hilda Costa
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Hilda Costa .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Todd K. Shackelford

  2. Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Viviana A. Weekes-Shackelford

Section Editor information

  1. Department of Psychology, Oakland University, Rochester, MI, USA

    Guilherme S. Lopes

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature

About this entry

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this entry

Costa, H. (2018). Workplace Relationships. In: Shackelford, T., Weekes-Shackelford, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_2815-1

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_2815-1

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Behavioral Science and PsychologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation