Can workplace social capital boost the positive effect of other job resources on job performance? A multilevel study on the reinforcement proposition of job-demands resources theory
Published:
Jul 23, 2026
Keywords:
workplace social capital, job resources, job performance,
Abstract
The aim of this study is to explore the role of workplace social capital (WSC), a construct that encompasses trust, reciprocity and organizational network, as an important resource at the organizational-level of analysis that interacts with other resources at the task-level in determining employee job performance. Based on job demands-resources (JD-R) theory, we hypothesized that WSC strengthens the positive relationship between job resources (i.e., job autonomy, colleagues’ social support and performance feedback) and both in-role and extra-role job performance. Five-hundred forty-seven employees nested within 115 organizations participated in the study. Multilevel analyses revealed that extra-role job performance was higher when both task-level resources and WSC were high. The moderating effect of WSC on the link between task-level resources and in-role performance was not supported. These findings highlight the role of WSC as an important organizational resource and contribute to JD-R theory by showing that resources from different levels of analysis reinforce one another in explaining job performance.
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Tsounis, A., Xanthopoulou, D., Demerouti, E., & Kafetsios, K. (2026). Can workplace social capital boost the positive effect of other job resources on job performance? A multilevel study on the reinforcement proposition of job-demands resources theory. Psychology: The Journal of the Hellenic Psychological Society, 31(2), 75–92. https://doi.org/10.12681/psy_hps.46276
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