Introduction

the differences would not be comparable. We also only tested teachers in elementary school settings. With settings varying greatly between elementary and secondary school, these findings might not translate cleanly to more advanced school set- tings. Despite these limitations, we hope that future research in education considers the affect theory and its mechanisms as it explores effective strategies to reduce teacher turnover or enhance other important outcomes. Realizing the mutuality of the relationship between the laboratory and the ‘‘real’’ world, we also argue that there is in- sight here for future research in the affect theory and the related relational cohesion theory. While Lawler and Yoon (1996) found no gender effects in early RCT research, discussion of gender has been notably absent in related research since then.10 Given our finding that gender plays a dominant role in the commitment-generating process, it is worth considering gender more pointedly in future experimental research. With the basis of the theory centering on affect and relations, it could be that women are more susceptible to the central mechanisms of the theories. This could be exacerbated in a women-dominated context like elementary education, where most of the interactions and relationships are with teachers of the same sex (Maccoby, 2002; Reis et al., 1985). It is important for future research on micro-social orders to consider more pointedly both gender and organiza- tional context. We began this article by describing the problem of teacher turnover and the dynamic relationship between experimental social psychology and life outside the laboratory. To forge connections between the two we explored the relevance of Law- ler’s affect theory (2001) to a significant problem in education, teacher turnover. Our results not only suggest that great in- sight can emerge from experimental social psychology, but also that relatively simply school-level policies and norms may hold great promise for enhancing teacher retention.are rare. This is particularly disappointing given what experimental social psychology has to offer, including well-developed, cumulative research programs like Lawler and his colleagues’ work on commitment to exchange relations (Lizardo, 2007). Lawler’s (2001) affect theory of social exchange builds on and extends previous work on relational cohesion theory (Law- ler and Yoon, 1993, 1996, 1998; Lawler et al., 2000, 2006) as it explores when, and how, individuals become committed to particular relationships. In this paper we test whether the affect theory’s model holds true in school settings. Specifically we ask whether the endogenous processes laid out in the theory (frequent interaction, positive emotion, and relational cohe- sion) is enhanced by interdependence and, if so, can it help to explain teachers’ commitment behaviors (including profes- sional investment and desire to stay at the school)? Our finding – that the model indeed holds for teachers in schools – not only addresses an important question and offers insight into reducing teach turnover, but reveals the natural links be- tween the simplistic theoretical models of the laboratory and the ‘‘messier’’ world outside.