Sub-theme 50: Dynamics of Trust and Distrust: Temporality, Technology and ‘Truth’
Call for Papers
Trust, Simmel (1990) argues, is a fundamental fabric of society. In the wake of recent events in politics and society,
scholarly and popular interest in trust has increased. Currently, we seem to be plagued simultaneously with unwarranted distrust
in science and ‘experts’, and unwarranted trust in fake news and social media feeds, highlighting the need to better understand
the evolution, bases and dynamics of trust (e.g. interpersonal trust being replaced by impersonal trust in systems and institutions,
or vice versa; institutionally conferred expertise losing its role in building trust). The aim of this sub-theme is to advance
understanding of the dynamics of trust and distrust by bringing together researchers who can offer theoretical and empirical
insights on these dynamics, particularly as they play out across time and multiple levels of analysis and/or through technology.
Trust dynamics have to some extent been the focus of foundational trust studies (e.g. Lewicki & Bunker,
1995; Zand, 1972), but often with a narrow focus at the interpersonal and micro-group level (Gillespie, 2017). Rather than
linear development within one relationship, as these traditional models suggest, there may be dynamic trust spirals across
individual and collective levels of analysis, so that trust occurs at the interplay of micro- and macro levels (Ferrin et
al., 2008; Schilke & Cook, 2013). A process view on trust, furthermore, calls for renewed attention to trust as temporally
situated, drawing on the interpretation of the past and the expectations of the future, and exploration of how trust dynamics
will be influenced by the time horizons of trustor and trustee (Jagd & Fuglsang, 2016; Möllering, 2001). It may also be
questioned to what extent trust is symmetrical and reciprocated over time (Korsgaard et al., 2015; Skinner et al., 2014),
and the extent to which swift trust is a distinct form of trust, refocusing attention on how time and speed determine trust
dynamics (Blomqvist & Cook, 2018).
Trust dynamics reflect not only the development and maintenance of
trust, but also the destruction and restoration of trust over time. In this work, there is increasing evidence to suggest
that distrust is not simply the same as low trust but a distinct concept, and consequently will have distinct but interrelated
dynamics which need to be understood in their own right (Bijlsma-Frankema et al., 2015; Guo et al., 2017; Lewicki et al.,
1998). However, the dynamics of trust and distrust have not been sufficiently explored. For example, it is not understood
whether trust and distrust can co-exist and if and to what extent distrust may function as a barrier to trust development
or repair. In line with recent calls for research on the dynamic interplay of trust and distrust and on the temporal dynamics
of trust repair mechanisms (Bachmann et al., 2015; Gillespie, 2017), we encourage submissions that address these issues.
Trust relations in modern society are increasingly a complex web of interpersonal and impersonal relations that
are embedded and mediated through technology (Giddens, 1990; Sztompka, 1999). Our increasing reliance on technology and digital
platforms for relationships, information sharing and collaboration and service delivery poses questions as to how trust dynamics
play out in digital contexts (van der Werff et al., 2018). We call for deeper exploration both of trust relationships mediated
by digital technology, and of impersonal trust in digital systems and artificial intelligence.
In sum, this
sub-theme encourages scholars to revisit the dynamics of trust and distrust in light of recent socio-economic, political and
technological developments and disruptions in society. We call for conceptual and empirical papers that deepen and extend
understanding of these dynamics as they play out across interpersonal, group, organization and/or inter-organizational levels.
We actively encourage papers that bring a stronger temporal, processual and/or multilevel perspective to the study of trust
and distrust, as well as those that extend understanding of the dynamics of trust and/or distrust in technology mediated or
digital contexts.
Potential questions that could be addressed include (but are not limited to) the following:
How are the dynamics of trust development, decline and restoration related to notions of time, memory and forgetting? How do perceptions of temporality influence trust dynamics?
What is the significance of speed for trust dynamics? To what extent does the pace of trust development in itself change the nature and dynamics of trust (e.g. the development of ‘swift trust’ rather than ‘normal’ trust)?
How do trust and distrust as processes and practices develop, evolve and change within and between organizations over time? Do the dynamics of trust and distrust differ in meaningful ways, and how are they intertwined?
What influence does technology have on trust dynamics? Do trust dynamics that take place solely in a digital context differ to those that occur in face to face or hybrid contexts, and if so how?
What is the basis for trust or distrust in digital systems? Under what circumstances are expert systems trusted or distrusted to establish ‘truth’?
How are the dynamics of trust and distrust affected by asymmetry of trust, power and/or control in the relationship?
How do the dynamics of trust play out across levels, from micro interpersonal and group contexts to the more macro organizational, institutional and societal levels? For example, how do interpersonal and impersonal (organizational or institutional) trust dynamics differ and interrelate?
References
- Bachmann, R., Gillespie, N., & Priem, R.L. (2015): „Repairing trust in organizations and institutions: toward a conceptual framework.” Organization Studies, 36 (9), 1123–1142.
- Bijlsma-Frankema, K., Sitkin, S. B., & Weibel, A. (2015): “Distrust in the Balance: The Emergence and Development of Intergroup Distrust in a Court of Law.” Organization Science, 26 (4), 1018–1039.
- Blomqvist, K., & Cook, K.S. (2018): “Swift trust. State-of-the-art and future research directions.” In: R. Searle, A.-M. Nienaber & S.B. Sitkin (eds.): The Routledge Companion to Trust. London: Routledge.
- Ferrin, D.L., Bligh, M.C., & Kohles, J.C. (2008): “It takes two to tango: an interdepence analysis of the spiralling processes of perceived trustworthiness in cooperation in interpersonal and intergroup relationshps.” Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 107 (2), 161–178.
- Giddens, A. (1990): The Consequences of Modernity. Cambridge: Polity Press.
- Gillespie, N. (2017): “Trust dynamics and repair: An interview with Roy Lewicki.” Journal of Trust Research, 7 (2), 204–219.
- Guo, S.-L., Lumineau, F., & Lewicki, R.J. (2017): “Revisiting the Foundations of Organizational Distrust.” Foundations and Trends in Management, 1 (1), 1–88.
- Jagd, S., & Fuglsang, L. (eds.) (2016): Trust, Organizations and Social Interaction. Studying Trust as Process within and between Organizations. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar.
- Korsgaard, A.M., Brower, H.H., & Lester, S.W. (2015): “It isn’t always mutual: A critical review of dyadic trust.” Journal of Management, 41 (1), 47–70.
- Lewicki, R.J., & Bunker, B.B. (1995): “Trust in Relationships. A Model of Development and Decline.” In: B.B. Bunker & J.Z. Rubin (eds.): Conflict, Cooperation, and Justice. Essays inspired by the work of Morton Deutsch. San Fransisco: Jossey-Bass, 133–173.
- Lewicki, R.J., McAllister, D.J., & Bies, R.J. (1998): „Trust and distrust: New relationships and realities.” Academy of Management Review, 23 (3), 438–458.
- Möllering, G. (2001): “The Nature of Trust: From Georg Simmel to a Theory of Expectation, Interpretation and Suspension.” Sociology, 35 (2), 403–420.
- Schilke, O., & Cook, K.S. (2013): “A cross-level process theory of trust development in interorganizational relationships.” Strategic Organization, 11 (3), 281–303.
- Simmel, G. (1990): The Philosophy of Money, 2nd ed. London: Routledge.
- Skinner, D., Dietz, G., & Weibel, A. (2014): “The dark side of trust: When trust becomes a ‘poisoned chalice’.” Organization, 21 (2), 206–224.
- Sztompka, P. (1999): Trust. A Sociological Theory. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
- van der Werff, L., Real, C., & Lynn, T.G. (2018): “Individual Trust and the Internet.” In: R. Searle, A.-M. Nienaber & S.B. Sitkin (eds.): The Routledge Companion to Trust. London: Routledge.
- Zand, D.E. (1972): “Trust and managerial problem solving.” Administrative Science Quarterly, 17 (2), 229–239.