Can trust game measure trust?

Abstract

<p id="C2">Trust games were widely used as a classic paradigm of trust measurement. However, the accuracy of the results of the trust game had been questioned by scholars in the field all the time, making precise trust measurement an important topic for exploration. The controversy mainly includes the following two aspects. On the one hand, the appropriateness of the trust game paradigm has yet to be verified. The controversy over paradigm changes further reveals that social preferences and risk preferences might have an impact on the level of investment trust, thereby reducing the internal validity of the trust game. On the other hand, the correlation between the level of the investment trust in trust games and the trust measured by the survey is very low, which can be explained by differences in attitudes and behaviours, differences in measurement types, and the limitations of trust measured by the survey and trust game. Although trust game face with some controversy, in general, it is still a suitable method for trust measuring. Future research should focus on the following points: Verifying the scientificity of the changes in the paradigm of trust game; Clarifying the low correlation between trust game and trust measured by survey; Expanding the measurement dimensions of trust game; Improving the ecological validity of trust game.