Generalized reciprocity and negative reciprocity affect employees' task performance differently. Generalized reciprocity boosts task performance, while negative reciprocity hinders it. Social exchange plays a key role in mediating these effects. Emotional labor also plays a role, with deep acting enhancing the positive impact of generalized reciprocity on social exchange, and surface acting diminishing the negative impact of negative reciprocity on social exchange. These findings have important implications for both research and management practices.