Shaping Trust Research Articles

Trust-building in countering violent extremism programs: a Muslim youth perspective

ABSTRACTThis paper explores the perspectives of young Australian Muslims and their reasons for distrusting government-led countering violent extremism (CVE) programs, while further discussing potential strategies to build trust. While previous literature has examined the relationship between the Muslim community and law enforcement in counterterrorism contexts, there is limited research on the perspectives of young Muslims involved in CVE programs. A phenomenological method was used to analyze the data. The findings indicate that these young Muslims do not question the intentions of individual CVE workers, but they do lack trust in the police as an organization and the government in general. The research recognizes the significance of both external and internal factors in shaping trust or distrust, while highlighting that a narrow focus on community policing as a means to build trust has contributed to the existing distrust among young Muslims. To address these issues, the paper suggests the implementation of a Community-Based Participatory Approach (CBPA) that empowers young Muslims by involving them in the CVE design process. This approach allows for greater community engagement and helps address the trust deficit by giving young Muslims a voice in shaping the direction and outcomes of their involvement.

Trust in Virtual Interaction: The Role of Avatars in Sustainable Customer Relationships

Trust—both cognitive and affective trust—sit at the core of the development of avatars in hospitality. Based on the theory of mind (ToM), this study collected data from 563 hotel customers and utilized partial least squares-structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) to examine the differential roles of affective and cognitive trust in shaping the customer experience, customer-brand identification, brand love, and brand loyalty, all within a framework that emphasizes sustainable relationships and practices. The framework encompasses a comprehensive approach to fostering long-term, mutually beneficial relationships throughout the customer journey. This research contributes to the field by exploring the specific impacts of affective and cognitive trust on various customer-related outcomes within the context of avatars in hospitality, providing valuable insights into the unique dynamics of trust-building in this domain. The findings shed light on the ToM and offer strategic marketing plans for hospitality practitioners, highlighting the significance of trust and sustainable customer relationships in driving long-term value.

In AI We Trust: The Interplay of Media Use, Political Ideology, and Trust in Shaping Emerging AI Attitudes

Using data from a nationally representative survey of U.S. adults, this study explores how trust in key actors to responsibly manage artificial intelligence (AI) develops among members of the U.S. population and how trust, along with other key factors, shapes public attitudes toward AI. Greater trust is linked to stronger support for AI, both directly and indirectly (through risk and benefit perceptions). Furthermore, the strength or direction of the link between trust and support—as well as media diets and trust—differs significantly for liberals and conservatives, suggesting that Americans are indeed beginning to process AI-related information through a political lens.

COVID-19, Diffuse Anxiety, and Public (Mis)Trust in Government: Empirical Insights and Implications for Crime and Justice

Given that trust in government is a critical feature of a well-functioning democracy, research into its determinants has long been a priority among public opinion scholars. The consensus in the literature is that short-term factors drive the ebbs and flows of public trust, and a climate of mistrust has significant consequences on the government's ability to deliver on policies and enforce the law. Despite decades of extensive research on public trust, changing circumstances related to the COVID-19 pandemic support the need to investigate the factors shaping trust in this distinct period. This article, using data from the American National Election Study, explores how economic, social, and political anxieties pervasive throughout the pandemic influence trust in the United States government. Findings from ordered logistic regression analyses indicate that public trust in government is associated with views of the government's COVID-19 response, beliefs about the state of the country and government corruption, economic anxieties, and concerns about election fraud and the status of American democracy. Findings also reveal that sentiments toward institutions—including the police and the Center for Disease Control—contribute to variability in public trust. The implications of these findings for criminal justice research and policy are also considered.

Mediating Role of Brand Trust and Brand Affection on Relationship between Brand Experience and Brand Loyalty: A Study of the Automobile Users in Pakistan

This study illuminates the mediating mechanisms of brand trust (BT) and brand affection (BA) in shaping the relationship between brand experience (BE) and brand loyalty (BL) among Pakistani automobile users, enabling marketers to improve customer loyalty and brand strategies based on the Stimulus, Organism, Response (S-O-R) theoretical model among automobile users in Pakistan. A standardized questionnaire is used to acquire quantitative data from 258 Pakistani car owners. Brand experience significantly improves BT, BA, and BL. BE and BL are also mediated by BT and BA. BT mediates the relationship between BE and BL better than BA. The study emphasizes BT and BA as mediators between BE and BL, notably in Pakistan's automobile industry. The study suggests that Pakistani automakers should establish BT and BA to maximize customer retention and revenue. The data was analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM). BE increases BT, BA, and BL. BE and BL were mediated by BT and BA. The study indicated that BT mediates the relationship between BE and BA, while BA mediates BL. Brand managers and marketers can learn from this study. It advises that brand managers should create pleasant brand experiences that enhance BT and BA to build BL among Pakistani vehicle users. They should also build BT and BA, which mediate the relationship between brand experience and BL. This study shows how BE, BT, and BA generate BL among Pakistani automobile users. This study enhances the literature by illustrating how BE affects BT, BA, and BL in the Pakistani automobile industry. Its detailed understanding of these relationships helps practitioners and scholars.

Income Inequality and Political Trust: Do Fairness Perceptions Matter?

Political trust—in terms of trust in political institutions—is an important precondition for the functioning and stability of democracy. One widely studied determinant of political trust is income inequality. While the empirical finding that societies with lower levels of income inequality have higher levels of trust is well established, the exact ways in which income inequality affects political trust remain unclear. Past research has shown that individuals oftentimes have biased perceptions of inequality. Considering potentially biased inequality perceptions, I argue that individuals compare their perceptions of inequality to their preference for inequality. If they identify a gap between what they perceive and what they prefer (= fairness gap), they consider their attitudes towards inequality unrepresented. This, in turn, reduces trust in political institutions. Using three waves of the ESS and the ISSP in a cross-country perspective, I find that (1) perceiving a larger fairness gap is associated with lower levels of political trust; (2) the fairness gap mediates the link between actual inequality and political trust; and (3) disaggregating the fairness gap measure, political trust is more strongly linked to variation in inequality perceptions than to variation in inequality preferences. This indicates that inequality perceptions are an important factor shaping trust into political institutions.

Understanding Consumer Attitudes towards Sustainable Investments: A Qualitative Exploration

Sustainable investments, which integrate environmental, social, and governance (ESG) factors into investment decisions, are becoming increasingly popular as consumers become more conscious of the ethical impact of their financial choices. This study explores consumer attitudes toward sustainable investments, focusing on the key drivers, perceptions, and barriers that influence their decision-making process. Through a qualitative analysis based on interviews and case studies, the research uncovers how consumers balance financial returns with ethical considerations and the role of trust, transparency, and knowledge in shaping these attitudes. The study also provides insights into how investment firms can better cater to the growing demand for sustainable investment options.

Trust in international cooperation: Emotional and cognitive trust complement each other over time

Abstract We unpack trust and its underlying emotional and cognitive dimensions over time, based on a case study of a Colombian human-rights NGO and its donors. The emotional trust dimension is anchored in the values and interests that the NGO and its donors share. The cognitive trust dimension is grounded in the control and reporting practices of the NGO and its donors. We highlight the dynamic nature of trust by showing how the emotional and cognitive dimensions shape trust over time as the NGO-donor relationship progresses. Depending on the relationship stage, trust can be grounded relatively more or less in its emotional and cognitive dimensions. Across the different stages of the relationship, the two trust dimensions are complements and reinforce one another. Our study highlights that trust in NGOs is not replaced by accountability, as accounting and civil society research argues. Instead, accountability and trust, especially its emotional dimension, are mutually constitutive.

How Rally-Round-the-Flag Effects Shape Trust in the News Media: Evidence from Panel Waves before and during the COVID-19 Pandemic Crisis

ABSTRACT In this study, we extend the literature on the rally ‘round the flag phenomenon, that is, that international crises tend to cause an increase in citizens’ approval of political institutions. We advance this literature and highlight its relevance for political communication research in three ways: 1) by theorizing and empirically testing two arguments for why rally effects should extend to trust in the news media on the institutional level, 2) by providing empirical evidence on how rally effects on trust in the media develop over time during an international crisis, and 3) by theorizing and testing the conditions under which rally effects on media trust are more likely to occur by studying heterogeneous effects. Through a panel design with a pre-crisis baseline of Norwegian citizens’ trust in news media, we find evidence to suggest that the compound effect of the COVID-19 pandemic crisis caused a long-lasting increase in trust in the news media in Norway, and that the degree of increase varied by citizens’ education and whether they belonged to a “high-risk” group. We also provide evidence to suggest that rally effects on news media trust are contingent on how important the news media is as a source of information about the crisis and the “trust nexus” between media trust and political trust. These insights extend our current understanding of how times of crisis affect trust in the news media.

Students’ Trust and Their Educational Trajectory after Graduation

The article is devoted to the role of students’ trust in shaping their educational trajectory after graduation. In particular, the question is how students’ trust in the actors of higher education (peers, teachers and university management) is related to their intention to continue their education in the specialty received after graduating from a bachelor’s or specialist’s degree. The nature of trust refers not only to the psychological characteristics of a person, but also finds its roots in social relations. When studying educational trajectories this hallmark of trust makes it possible to shift the focus from socio-economic, institutional, gender, and psychological factors that are regularly in the field of researchers’ attention to relational ones, which appear relatively rarely in their field of interest. The work uses data from a sociological survey of students of Russian universities. The results obtained are that students’ trust in university management, in contrast to their trust in other actors, is the most significant indicator that they will continue their education in their specialty after graduation. Students’ trust in peers and teachers are less stable factors. In addition, the addressee of trust, rather than the radius, is more important for students to decide whether to continue their education in their specialty after graduation.

Evaluating the Role of City Improvement Trusts or Boards in Shaping Salutogenic Character of Urban Areas: Case of Bangalore City

The city of Bangalore sprawls over 741 sq.mt and is likely to grow consistently in the coming decades with approximately 100 million USD in investments committed in 2022. With climate changes and post Pandemic regulations- the city of 13 Million people is facing a challenging situation where the quality of life-particularly health, needs to be balanced for all its residents. uses Case Study method to understand- the diverse parameters defining the role of City Improvement This paper aims to examine the role and scope of the City's Improvement Trust in shaping its salutogenic character. This paper reviews the framework from which the Trust derives authority, the models of operation, its criticism from the public domain, and its ability to meet future challenges. This research Trust, its limitations, and to develop a matrix for the same. The paper concludes with guidelines for the future of such bodies in metropolitan Indian cities.

Experience Matters, After All: What Social Psychology Can Teach Us about Transnational Contact and Trust

There has been much debate about the causes of trust in abstract groups of strangers such as foreign nations. Some scholars have highlighted the important role of personal experiences in shaping social trust, while others have largely dismissed such experiences. This article suggests that social psychological contact theory, which highlights one particular type of experience, has much to contribute to trust research: accordingly, people’s contact experiences with strangers lead them to generalise from these experiences and undergo a process of social learning. Using original survey data from Poland, this article shows that, consistent with contact theory, pleasant contact experiences with members of specific other nations increase trust in those nations, while unpleasant contact experiences decrease it. The characteristics of different objects of trust do not fundamentally challenge the universalist logic of contact theory. Ultimately, this supports the position that personal experience in adult life matters greatly in shaping trust.

At the Heart of Trust: Understanding the Integral Relationship Between Emotion and Trust

Trust and emotion have been among the most influential and frequently studied constructs in organizational behavior over the last two decades. Although emotion would seem to be integral to interpersonal trust, it has played a minor part in the literature. This article is intended to advance understanding of emotion’s role in shaping trust judgments to help bring this concept into the central conversation on trust within organizations. Our paper begins with a review of existing research to help understand how emotion fits within the nomological network of trust and to identify some of the key insights from empirical research. The review suggests emotion impacts trust in two fundamentally different ways, based on independent streams of research, by how it is experienced as a trustor and expressed by the trustee. We provide a conceptual model that integrates these different perspectives as well as brings in key ideas which are absent from research on organizational trust: (a) using a validated and more sophisticated model of trust and trustworthiness will add greater insight into how emotion impacts trust, (b) experienced and expressed emotions jointly and interactively affect trust, (c) trust and emotion operate at multiple levels of analysis, including dyadic and network, and (d) trust and emotion change over time as a function of each other. We conclude that there is much opportunity for future research on trust and emotion, and suggest future directions.

Co-partisanship with mayors, institutional performance, and citizen trust in local governance institutions: Evidence from Tunisia

Does co-partisanship with mayors influence citizen trust in local governance institutions in new democracies? I answer this question through conducting a case study in Tunisia. I evaluate Arab Barometer (2018) survey data on trust in local governance institutions, and interview data with mayors, council members and civil society organizations (CSOs). The results indicate that Tunisians who support the same political party as their mayors tend to develop greater levels of trust in local governance institutions. Both quantitative evidence through a mediation model and qualitative evidence link a substantive portion of this relationship to the perceptions of institutional performance, such as their degrees of corruption, clientelism, inclusivity and efficiency. The findings identify the role and mechanism of co-partisanship in shaping trust in local governance institutions among the emerging democracies. This contributes to understanding the influence of parties in new democracies despite their weaknesses.

DIGITAL TRUST IN THE ACADEME: PEOPLE, SOFTWARE, AND HARDWARE

Information technology plays a critical role in educational management and administration. With information technology integral to shaping trust in the workplace, this paper aims to determine digital trust in educational institutions. Specifically, this article presents the measurement of digital trust level in terms of hardware, software, and people in educational institutions. It also shows the relationships and differences between digital trust and the respondents' socio-demographics, employment, and technological profiles. An online survey questionnaire was utilized using the Marcial-Launer Digital Trust in the Workplace Questionnaire, with 878 responses from academic institutions analyzed. A 4-point forced Likert scale and weighted mean were used to measure the level of trust. Chi-square and one-way ANOVA were utilized to determine significant relationships and differences, respectively. A multiple regression was calculated to predict the level of digital trust on the profiles of the respondents. The results illustrate a moderate level of confidence in electronic devices, hardware and software systems, information systems, and people with access to technology in academic workplaces, with a mean of 2.92. The results also show that socio-demographics, employment profiles, and technologic profiles appeared to be significantly related, at the same time showing differences in the level of digital trust. Gender, income level, and connectivity satisfaction were significant predictors of the level of digital trust in the academic sector. Therefore, it is concluded that there is reasonable trust in information technology in terms of hardware, software, and people in academic institutions. Teachers and non-teaching staff have adequate confidence in electronic devices, hardware and software, information systems, and people who have access to digital technology in the academic working environment. It is recommended that IT departments and similar offices orient, guide, and train employees on the use of electronic devices, for them to be familiar with and confident in using such technology. School administrators need to exert more effort to augment the trust levels among their employees.

The Effects of Partner Extraversion and Agreeableness on Trust.

Existing research has documented the social benefits (i.e., higher popularity and liking) of extraversion and agreeableness. Do these positive reputational consequences extend to social dilemma situations that require trust? We found that people do not trust extraverts more than introverts. Instead, people's trust decisions are guided by their partner's level of agreeableness. In a trust game (Studies 1 and 2), individuals were more likely to trust a partner who was described as agreeable (vs. disagreeable); and, in a laboratory study of work groups, participants trusted more (vs. less) agreeable group members (Study 3). Individuals anticipated others' preferences for agreeable partners and tried to come across as more agreeable, but not more extraverted, in social dilemmas (Study 4). These findings suggest that the social benefits of agreeableness (but not extraversion) extend to social interactions involving trust and highlight the importance of target personality traits in shaping trust decisions.

Trust and beliefs about robots in Latin America

PurposeThe goal of this paper is to study the factors that determine individuals' beliefs about robots in Latin America. The authors highlight the role of interpersonal trust in shaping these beliefs.Design/methodology/approachThe authors use data from 2018 Latinobarómetro survey in 18 Latin American countries. The analysis includes an empirical strategy that reduces overt bias and weighs hidden bias.FindingsRobots are not generally supported or positively perceived in Latin America. However, people are less negative about robots when they (1) trust others, (2) are male, (3) are single, (4) are more educated, (5) support democracy and (6) favor free imports. Interpersonal trust is the most consistent covariate. The results provide support to the idea that trusting robots can be the result of trusting humans working in the technological sector (Coeckelbergh, 2012).Research limitations/implicationsThis study faces some limitations. The first one relates to the standard caveats associated with the use of survey data – interviewees may not express their true beliefs. Another limitation is that this study examines data for only one year (the 2018 Latinobarómetro survey). Finally, although propensity score matching allow to control for endogeneity due to observable characteristics and the authors perform a sensitivity test regarding hidden characteristics, the nature of the data does not allow to guarantee that there is a causal effect from interpersonal trust to beliefs about robots.Practical implicationsThe authors find that the positive relationship between trust and beliefs about robots is particularly strong in the area of health. Medical companies could consider these findings when designing and promoting robots.Social implicationsNegative views about robots may delay the adoption of new technology in the region. To facilitate the adoption of new technologies, stakeholders should pay attention to the prevalent levels of interpersonal trust in society. This is especially important in developing countries.Originality/valueTo the authors’ knowledge this is the first study that empirically links beliefs about robots and interpersonal trust.

The role of ethical trustworthiness in shaping trust and affective commitment in schools

ABSTRACT The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of school principal trustworthiness components (i.e., ability, integrity, benevolence) in helping shape teacher trust and affective commitment within schools. Using data from 1,026 teachers in Spain and structural equation modeling (via EQS 6.3), this study establishes how a principal’s integrity and benevolence are key in determining, both directly and indirectly (via trust in the principal), teachers’ affective commitment to their school. It also reveals that the perceived ability of a principal is not effective in generating trust or affective commitment to the school in teachers. As a contribution to the literature, these findings reveal that the ethical trustworthiness (benevolence, integrity) of principals is key in engendering trust and affective commitment to schools. Thus, to shape work environments that are high in trust and commitment, principals should focus on behaving in ways that make their integrity and benevolence manifest to their teachers.

Future Orientation and Political Participation: The Moderating Role of Political Trust

Previous studies show consistent differences in how people evaluate future consequences and implications of this for a variety of phenomena. The implications for the individual propensity for taking part in different forms of political participation have received limited scholarly attention, however. This is unfortunate since it affects how people voice their concerns over future problems and thereby also whether and how decision-makers become aware of these concerns. We here examine this in a cross-sectional study conducted in Finland (N = 1,673). We apply the Considerations of Future Consequences (CFC) framework as a measure of individuals’ future orientation and distinguish between considerations of future consequences (CFC-future) and considerations of immediate consequences (CFC-Immediate). We study the direct associations with institutionalized and non-institutionalized political participation and the moderating role of political trust in shaping these associations. Our results show CFC-future has a positive association with both institutionalized and non-institutionalized political participation, while CFC-immediate has a negative association with participation. Political trust moderates the association with non-institutionalized political participation since the association is stronger for citizens with low political trust. This may suggest that citizens use particular participatory avenues to communicate their worries over future problems, and to which decision-makers must be attentive.

Polite speech strategies and their impact on drivers’ trust in autonomous vehicles

This study proposes adopting linguistic politeness in vehicle speech interfaces, as active communication between drivers and vehicles will become an essential part of driving with advanced autonomous driving technologies. Two between-subjects experiments were conducted to test the influences of politeness strategies (i.e., asking help, giving a reason, expressing gratitude) on drivers' perceptions of the vehicles. The results indicate that drivers evaluate polite vehicles as more sociable and trustworthy, and they perceive polite instructions were more acceptable. The results also suggest that providing reasons for requests and expressing gratitude for drivers' cooperation can be an optimal linguistic strategy in vehicle speech interfaces. Moreover, this study identifies the layers of heuristics in the process of shaping trust in autonomous vehicles. Drivers can instantly recognize politeness in vehicle speech interfaces, and this politeness heuristic was found to increase drivers' perception of social presence, thereby heightening drivers’ trust in the autonomous vehicles.