Experimental test of social exchange theory in sports teams

Abstract

   In pluralistic societies that include most of the world today, people's reactions to events are mainly based on the framework that determines their relationships with others. Research in this field has shown that people respond to social stimuli in an apparently specific pattern, and social exchange theory is one of the best theories that emphasizes individual reactions to social situations. This research was conducted with the aim of testing the theory of social exchange in sports groups. This study was carried out with a cross-sectional survey method. The data of the present study was collected from 215 students of Yazd University who were selected from the seven sports teams of this university by proportional stratified sampling method. In this research, a standard questionnaire was used to obtain the required data. This questionnaire has had the necessary reliability and validity. The results of the Pearson correlation coefficient showed that there is a statistically significant relationship between the research variables, but the modeling results showed that between the dimensions of justice, only transpersonal justice with a coefficient of determination of 0.20 and cognitive justice with a coefficient of 0.30 and procedural justice with a coefficient of determination 0.15 is related to trust. Also, trust has a significant relationship with exchange with a coefficient of determination of 0.62, exchange with commitment with a coefficient of determination of 0.36, and commitment and action with a coefficient of determination of 0.28.