Role Of Social Trust Research Articles

Compliance with kauri forest protection in New Zealand’s regional parks: the mediating role of trust on local versus visitor populations

Realising behavioural change in long invested environmental practices is often difficult to achieve, especially when scientific understanding of the issues is still unfolding. Having confidence in one’s action requires knowledge that actions will be effective in improving environmental outcomes. Currently, we know little about the role of social trust in mediating complex and uncertain knowledge of environmental problems and the required actions needed to address them. In this quantitative study, we surveyed 472 users of endangered kauri forests in New Zealand to better explore the role of trust in relation to pro-environmental behaviours (PEB) designed to mitigate effects of the devastating plant disease, kauri dieback. Findings show uncertainty about the scientific knowledge of the issue, recommended actions and efficacy of proposed solutions significantly influenced PEB for both residents and visitors of forests; however, this relationship was partially mediated by trust, particularly among locals residing within 5 km of infected forest areas. These findings indicate the need for closer engagement with local residents to develop institutional and scientific trust in kauri dieback interventions. We outline activities that may help build trust and recommend new areas of research to support higher compliance with environmental protection initiatives.

Public acceptance towards plastic waste-to-energy gasification projects: The role of social trust and health consciousness

Public acceptance plays an essential role in successfully constructing and operating innovative and evolving technologies that promote ecological sustainability and pollution reduction. The present study investigates the factors influencing public acceptance of plastic waste-to-energy gasification projects. The research added social trust and health consciousness to the theory of planned behavior. Using the structural equation modeling, 513 valid survey questionnaire responses from the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region, China, were analyzed. The most notable results reveal that attitude, social norms, and perceived behavioral control have a major impact on the public acceptability of the initiative. There was no correlation between social trust and public support for the project. Social trust affects public acceptance of the project through attitude. Health consciousness was shown to be favorably connected with public approval of the project both directly and indirectly through attitude. This study serves policymakers and stakeholders with robust policy recommendations to promote public acceptance of plastic waste-to-energy gasification schemes and other hazardous facilities.

Does social trust promote the size of enterprises? Evidence from China

Existing research on the relationship between social trust and enterprise size primarily relies on cross-country analysis, but country-specific studies are still rare, especially for developing countries. Drawing on Fukuyama’s proposition that social trust fosters enterprise expansion, this study empirically investigates the effect of social trust on the size of enterprises in China. We analyze industrial enterprise data from the China Industrial Enterprise Database and manually collected data on blood donations, a proxy for social trust, at the prefecture level. Our findings indicate that regions with higher social trust have both larger enterprises and a greater prevalence of large enterprises than regions with low social trust. This study offers an explanation for the “riddle of the absence of large enterprises in China” by considering the role of social trust and provides an empirical examination of Fukuyama’s proposition in the unique context of China.

Geographic proximity and trade credit: Evidence from a quasi-natural experiment

This paper examines the impact of geographic proximity on suppliers' decisions to provide trade credit to their customers. To establish a causal relationship, we utilize the implementation of high-speed rail (HSR) services in China as a quasi-natural experiment. Our findings reveal a significant increase in trade credit received by firms after introducing HSR services. We propose and test three mechanisms to elucidate the influence of proximity on trade credit provision: the enhanced convenience for acquiring soft information, heightened competition among suppliers, and the potential development of social trust. Empirical evidence strongly supports the first two mechanisms, underscoring their importance in shaping trade credit decisions. However, limited evidence is found regarding the role of social trust. These findings contribute to understanding the complex interplay between geographic proximity, trade credit, and supplier decision-making processes.

Determinants and Roles of Social Trust on Income and Food Security Status of Smallholder Farmers in North Shewa Zone Oromia, Ethiopia

Determinants and Roles of Social Trust on Income and Food Security Status of Smallholder Farmers in North Shewa Zone Oromia, Ethiopia

Social trust and the choices to provide audited financial statements by private firms in emerging markets

Our study explores the association between social trust and private firms' choices to provide audited financial statements. By exploring an international sample from emerging markets, we find that private firms in countries with higher social trust are less likely to provide audited financial statements. This finding arises because social trust helps address contracting imperfections, substituting for audited financial statements in mitigating agency problems. Our study suggests that social trust renders private firms rely less on audited financial statements to facilitate contracting. We contribute to the literature on private firms’ financial reporting choices and the role of social trust in shaping economic decisions.

Influencing factors on building and improving social trust in emergency and disaster relief efforts: a systematic review

Purpose This study aims to review the results of relevant studies to shed light on social trust-building in different contexts and the factors that affect it in disaster risk management. Design/methodology/approach This systematic review was conducted using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses model. The study keywords were searched for in PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science databases on August 2021. The inclusion criteria were English-written articles published in social trust and disaster relief efforts. Exclusion criteria were lack of access to the full text and article types such as nonoriginal articles. Findings Out of 1,359 articles found, 17 articles were included in the final analysis using four general categories: six articles on the role of local government in trust-building (local governments), five articles on the role of social media in trust-building (social media), four articles on the role of social capital in trust-building (social capital) and two articles on the importance of community participation in trust-building (community participation). Originality/value Understanding the role of social trust and the factors which influence it will help the development of community-based disaster risk management. Therefore, disaster management organizations and other relief agencies should take the findings of this study into account, as they can help guide policymaking and the adoption of strategies to improve public trust and participation in comprehensive disaster risk management. Further studies recommended understanding people’s experiences and perceptions of social trust, relief and disaster preparedness.

Are Underdog Entrepreneurs Less Generous? The Role of Social Trust and Gender

Are Underdog Entrepreneurs Less Generous? The Role of Social Trust and Gender

Social Trust Towards Risk in International Business: A Cross-Country Analysis

There is a growing body of research on social trust in the literature in business and economics. This study adopts the conceptual and empirical relationship between trust behaviour and risk-taking propensity, and further extends the frontier of research on social trust by examining whether social trust can influence country risk in international business settings. Using a panel data set consisting of developing and developed countries over the period 1995–2019, the study performs a battery of empirical tests, and finds robust evidence that developing countries with a higher level of social trust appear to display a greater degree of financial uncertainty. The findings are consistent with recent experimental studies documenting a significant positive association between trust and risk-taking behaviour. The study provides new insights into the role of social trust in country risk assessment, and offers meaningful implications for international business.

A cross-cultural analysis of ridesharing intentions and compliance with COVID-19 health guidelines: The roles of social trust, fear of COVID-19, and trust-in-God

Ridesharing services such as Uber and Lyft have been substantially affected by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Drawing on social capital theory, the current research investigates how social trust relates to three types of trust in compliance with COVID-19 guidelines and consumers' ridesharing intentions. Analyzing data from two economically and culturally distinct countries, the results suggest that social trust positively affects trust in platform companies' compliance with COVID-19 guidelines (TPC), but not (or to a lesser extent) trust in drivers' (TDC) and other riders (TRC) compliance with COVID-19 guidelines in both the United States and Bangladesh. Importantly, TPC, TDC, and TRC are positively related with consumers' ridesharing intentions in the United States but not in Bangladesh. Furthermore, the analysis reveals two counterintuitive moderating effects of fear of COVID-19 and trust in God. The results provide important insights on factors affecting the ridesharing industry in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, and they emphasize the importance of considering cultural context in understanding consumers’ intentions to engage in the sharing economy.

Country Risk Assessment: The Role of Social Trust

Country Risk Assessment: The Role of Social Trust

Generalized morality and the provision of public goods: The role of social trust and public participation

A growing narrative in literature of organizational accountability and collective actions, which are regarded as key to the provision of public goods (PPG). However, very limited studies have investigated the relationship between generalized morality and the provision of the public good. Hence, we investigate whether generalized morality affects the provision of public goods using the data from 401 villages in China. A hypothesized analytical framework is built up, which concerns the relationship between generalized morality and public goods provision. Our results show that generalized morality is essential for public goods provision. Further analysis reveals that generalized morality can also be fostered by social trust and public participation. The findings highlight that increased generalized morality from intensive public participation is a potential pathway for improving the provision of public goods.

Demand for mitigating the risk of COVID-19 infection in public transport: The role of social trust and fatalistic beliefs

The rapid surge of COVID-19 cases worldwide drew attention to COVID-19 infection as a new source of risk in transport. The virus introduced a need for viral transmission mitigation as a major priority when selecting a mode of travel, and caused a significant drop in public transport use. The recovery of public transport use in the post-COVID period requires that the transport authorities favourably address people’s demand for mitigation of the risk of COVID-19 transmission in public transport. The present study aims to explore the role of risk perception, worry and priority of COVID-19 risk reduction along with fatalistic beliefs and public trust in authorities in explaining public demand for risk mitigation. The present study is among the first to investigate the role of fatalistic beliefs, social trust and risk perception for public transport and public demand for risk mitigation. The link between priority of infection prevention and demand for risk mitigation has also been less explored in public transport research. An online survey was conducted among university students in Iran between 19th April and 16th June 2020, during the first wave of the pandemic, when the country was a major epicentre of the disease. A total of 271 out of 370 respondents whose dominant mode on university travels was public transport were included in the analysis. Results of structural equation modelling confirmed the paradox of trust, indicating that social trust is negatively associated with perceived risk of COVID-19 infection, which in turn may lead people to place less importance on COVID-19 prevention as a priority in travel mode choice, and consequently demand less risk mitigation efforts to prevent COVID-19 infection in public transport. Dissimilar to trust, however, the results revealed no relationship between fatalistic beliefs and risk perception, but a significant direct effect of fatalistic beliefs on demand for risk mitigation. To reinforce public demand for mitigating the risk of COVID-19 in public transport, the study calls on policymakers to exploit public trust resources for more effective risk communication, through disseminating the gradually accumulating evidence-based information regarding the infectivity and the virulence of COVID-19 and the scientific risk of infection. The study also underlined the potential importance of considering fatalistic beliefs when developing effective risk communication policies and practices to enhance public support for COVID-19 risk mitigation in public transport.

Does Social Trust Affect Analysts’ Forecast? Evidence from China

ABSTRACT Using a sample of companies listed in the Chinese stock market between 2007 and 2019, this article investigates the effect of social trust on analysts’ forecasts. Our results show that regional social trust can lower analysts’ forecast errors and analysts’ forecast dispersion, that is, it improves analysts’ forecast quality. The institutional environment and state-owned property exacerbate these positive effects. Furthermore, the role of social trust in improving the quality of analysts’ forecasts is more significant in listed companies with a poor information environment. We also find that social trust improves analysts’ forecast quality by improving earnings quality. After some robustness tests, our main conclusions are still valid. Overall, the findings reveal social trust affects analyst’s forecasts.

Інституціональні засади соціальної довіри в контексті фіскальної та монетарної безпеки

A review of the state of research on the problems of social confidence in the institutions of fiscal and monetary power as a factor of fiscal and monetary security in foreign and domestic economic literature (taking into account the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic) has been made. It is shown that the research is based mainly on the methodology of functional analysis and measurement of the subjective attitude to the object of trust, which is formed by changes in the behavior of the object and therefore can not serve as a signal to prevent negative trends. Regarding the interpretation of the essence of trust, its deep foundations, which is important for building an effective system of practical actions, in this area there are no generally accepted approaches, but there is a diversity of views and opinions. At the same time, the guidelines for determining the level of economic security in Ukraine, including financial security, are too cumbersome, somewhat outdated and difficult to apply in practice. Basic approaches to understanding and measuring trust and proposals for qualitative characteristics and possible quantitative indicators of social trust in the institutions of fiscal and monetary authority, based not on subjective impressions, but on assessments of the objective state of the fiscal and monetary sphere, are substantiated. It is proposed to build a system for assessing warning signals concerning the possible dynamics of the level of confidence and the risks and dangers, including the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, based on the ratios of hexagon components of macroeconomic indicators that reflect the conditions of the internal and external microeconomic stability , state budget balance, the balance of payments, exchange rate and interest rates). The role of social trust in the institutions of fiscal and monetary power as a basis for balanced dynamics of all components of economic development and a factor of fiscal and monetary security is revealed.

Does social trust affect corporate environmental performance in China?

This paper explores whether and how social trust affects corporate environmental performance. Using a unique panel data of Chinese enterprises from 2010 to 2012, we observe that social trust has significant negative effects on corporate pollution. Furthermore, the pollution reduction effect of social trust can be mediated by the increase in institutional quality and economic development and can also be attributed to the reduction of corporate pollution production, consistent with the role of social trust in promoting corporate “pollution prevention” strategies, rather than increasing pollution disposal. We also find that the negative association between social trust and corporate pollution is much stronger for enterprises with private ownership, enterprises with high pollution intensity, and enterprises in eastern coastal areas of China. Our findings emphasize the importance of social trust in environmental protection, especially when formal rules are weak.

Examining the multilevel associations between psychological wellbeing and social trust: A primary analysis of survey data.

The present study examines the associations between multiple measures of social trust and two outcomes of psychological wellbeing (happiness and depression) among South Korean adults (n = 1549) living in residential communities, that is, administrative districts (n = 77) in and around the capital city of Seoul. Based on multilevel modeling, we find that familial trust positively predicts happiness at both individual and contextual levels; and it negatively predicts depression at the individual level only. In comparison, peer trust is negatively related only to depression at the individual level, albeit marginally. Lastly, general trust significantly predicts both outcomes at the community, but not individual, level. These mixed findings suggest that the trust-wellbeing relationship depends critically on issues of definition (how the variables are conceptualized) and measurement (how they are operationalized according to different units of analysis). Our study offers implications for the literature on social determinants of mental health broadly and, more specifically, on the role of social trust.

Social support and social commerce purchase intention: The mediating role of social trust

Social commerce (s-commerce) has risen in popularity primarily owing to social media development. We investigated social support as a predictor of s-commerce purchase intention, and the mediating role of social trust in this relationship. Participants comprised 356 undergraduate students at five Chinese public universities. Structural equation modeling results indicate that social support had a direct positive effect on s-commerce purchase intention, and that social trust partially mediated this relationship. Our findings shed light on the relationship of social support and s-commerce purchase intention, and the practical contribution of the findings is that they can assist practitioners to develop better s-commerce strategies.

The role of social trust in reward crowdfunding campaigns’ design and success

Trust is critical for successful participation in online marketplaces. In crowdfunding, fundraisers seek to win the trust of potential supporters towards contributing to their projects despite risks of non-delivery or deviations from campaign promises. This study explores how cultural differences in social trust proclivities influence reward crowdfunding campaign design and success. Specifically, we analyze data about 700 campaigns from a relatively high social trust society (HTS) – Finland, and 700 campaigns from a relatively low social trust society (LTS) – Poland. We find that sharing campaign information via social media is positively associated with campaign success in both contexts. Building on the Elaboration Likelihood Model, we show that central route cues to persuasion are more prevalent in campaigns from LTS vs. HTS, and that some peripheral cues are more prevalent in campaigns from HTS than LTS. Finally, we find partial support that central route cues are more important for campaign success in LTS.

Investing in Low-Trust Countries: On the Role of Social Trust in the Global Mutual Fund Industry

AbstractWe hypothesize that social trust, in mitigating contracting incompleteness, may have an important effect on the activeness and effectiveness of delegated portfolio management. Using a complete sample of worldwide open-end mutual funds, we find that trust is positively associated with the activeness of funds and that trust-related active share delivers superior performance (e.g., approximately 2% per year for cross-border investments). Moreover, “trust in the market” and “trust in managers” play important yet different roles for different types of cross-border delegated portfolio management. Our results suggest that trust acts as a fundamental building block for delegated portfolio management.