A psychological contract, a concept developed in contemporary research by organizational scholar Denise Rousseau, represents the mutual beliefs, perceptions, and informal obligations between an employer and an employee. It sets the dynamics for the relationship and defines the detailed practicality of the work to be done. It is distinguishable from the formal written contract of employment which, for the most part, only identifies mutual duties and responsibilities in a generalized form.
Although Rousseau's 1989 article as highlighted by Coyle-Shapiro "was very influential in guiding contemporary research", the concept of the psychological contract was first introduced by Chris Argyris (1960):