Coye Cheshire & Andrew Fiore June 10, 2015 // Computer-Mediated Communication Trust and Trustworthiness

6/10/2015Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore1 The multidisciplinary problem of trust While definitions vary widely, relevance is rarely disputed: “Trust reduces the need for costly control structures, thus enabling exchanges that could otherwise not take place, and makes social systems more adaptable.” (Uslaner 2002, quoted in Riegelsberger et al. 2007)

6/10/2015Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore2 Trust and Trustworthiness “to have or place confidence in; depend on” “to place in the care of another; entrust” “reliance on something in the future; hope” “to have or place confidence in; depend on” “one in which confidence is placed” “dependence on something future or contingent”

6/10/2015Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore3 “Trust” in Information, Systems, Interfaces? Trust vs. Credibility Trust vs. Reliability, Security

6/10/2015Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore4 Defining Trust Cognitive Psychology  Trust as “personality trait” (dispositional trust)  Trust as learned experience (learned trust) Philosophy  Trust versus reliance, security Sociology and Social Psychology  Trust as behavior (situational trust)  Trust builds through risk- taking  Assessment of trustworthiness based on perceptions of others’ characteristics

6/10/2015Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore5 Conditions for Trust  The truster accepts some level of risk or vulnerability  There must exist a potential for betrayal  Trust is optimistic; the opposite is distrust. See:

6/10/2015Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore6 Trustworthiness Involves assessment of one’s future behavior ‘Trustworthiness’ is a characteristic that we infer about others Theoretically linked to perceived competence and motivations of a given partner  Competence to act in a way we deem appropriate  Motivation to act in our best interests

6/10/2015Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore7 Signaling Trustworthiness (Riegelsberger et al. 2007) Symbols “signify the presence of trust-warranting properties” Symptoms “given off as a by-product of trust warranting properties”

6/10/2015Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore8 Trust-Building in the Sociological, Relational Sense Interpersonal Trust Trust as an attitude about others’ desire and ability to act in a positive way towards us in a given context Involves repeated interactions between parties Theoretically linked to risk-taking Distinct from the concept of ‘cooperation’

6/10/2015Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore9 Uncertainty and Risk Ambiguity about the result of an interaction versus what is at stake.

6/10/2015Computer-Mediated Communication — Cheshire & Fiore10 Trust, Uncertainty and Commitment Peter Kollock (1994) – “rice and rubber markets”  uncertainty about quality leads to commitment and trust