#26 | How trust works: the science of building, breaking, and restoring trust, with Dr. Peter Kim

In this episode, I am talking to Dr. Peter Kim. He is a Professor of Management and Organization at University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business. His research focuses on the dynamics of social misperception, with a particular focus on the violation and repair of trust.

His latest book is called How trust works: the science of how relationships are built, broken, and repaired. 

In this conversation, we kick off by exploring the broader question of what trust actually is. The most cited definition of trust is that of: "The willingness of a party to be vulnerable to the actions of another party based on the expectation that the other will perform a particular action important to the trustor, irrespective of the ability to monitor or control that other party" (source).

We find that trust is ultimately about how we navigate mixed-motive situations: Does the other seek to benefit only themselves or others, too? 

We then look at how you scientifically measure how trust is established, broken, and repaired. What do the studies, the experiments look like?

Then we touch on how trust is built. You might know the trust equation (e.g., from the work of Charles Green) that describes trustworthiness as the result of credibility + reliability + intimacy (or openness); all divided by self-orientation. But the scientific literature has a few more factors worth considering:

1) availability, being present when needed 

2) competence, skills and professionalism

3) consistency or even loyalty 

4) discreetness

5) fairness and other markers of integrity

6) benevolence and benign intent

7) openness, not just in the sense of being ready to share, but also in the sense of being receptive and responsive.  

The elements of the trust equation will get you far, however, it is ultimately about figuring out the traits that are most important in a given situation and bolstering those. 

We then turn to the role of competence and integrity:

As Dr. Kim argues, we weigh matters of competence and integrity differently: in breaches of trust, lapses in integrity weigh more heavily than incompetence.

So how do we differentiate matters of competence and integrity? We don't do it well! We are easily influenced and led astray by our biases. Also, most matters are not clear cut; often both dimensions are involved when trust is broken. 

We explore whether we should be more trusting, pay it forward and assume good intent? Will people abuse trust or work to prove trusting people right? Peter Kim tells us that research shows “people who are more trusting are happier in life”.

Finally, we cover our unknown irrationalities when it comes to trusting others: Trust is so vital. But we make these judgements poorly. Here's one nugget from the research: It turns out we want to preserve relations with those in power, so we find reasons to trust them more.

Hope you enjoy this far-ranging conversation with Dr. Peter H. Kim.