Trust in Social Relations

Trust is key to understanding the dynamics of social relations, to the extent that it is often viewed as the glue that holds society together. We review the mounting sociological literature to help answer what trust is and where it comes from. To this end, we identify two research streams-on particu...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inAnnual review of sociology Vol. 47; no. 1; pp. 239 - 259
Main Authors Schilke, Oliver, Reimann, Martin, Cook, Karen S
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Palo Alto Annual Reviews 31.07.2021
Annual Reviews, Inc
Subjects
categorical trust
cooperation
generalized trust
Literature reviews
Modern society
particularized trust
Research methodology
Social dynamics
Social relations
Social systems
Trust
trustworthiness
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Summary:Trust is key to understanding the dynamics of social relations, to the extent that it is often viewed as the glue that holds society together. We review the mounting sociological literature to help answer what trust is and where it comes from. To this end, we identify two research streams-on particularized trust and generalized trust, respectively-and propose an integrative framework that bridges these lines of research while also enhancing conceptual precision. This framework provides the springboard for identifying several important avenues for future research, including new investigations into the radius of trust, the intermediate form of categorical trust, and the interrelationships between different forms of trust. This article also calls for more scholarship focusing on the consequences (versus antecedents) of trust, addressing more fully the trustee side of the relation, and employing new empirical methods. Such novel approaches will ensure that trust research will continue to provide important insights into the functioning of modern society in the years to come.
ISSN:0360-0572
1545-2115
DOI:10.1146/annurev-soc-082120-082850