Trust, Justice, and Team Motivation

•Trust is defined as the willingness to be vulnerable to an authority based on positive expectations about the authority’s actions and intentions.–Person-based–Organization-based

•Justice reflects the perceived fairness of an authority’s decision making.

Trust

• Disposition-based trust means that your personality traits include a general propensity to trust others.

• Cognition-based trust means that trust is rooted in a rational assessment of the authority’s trustworthiness.

• Affect-based trust means that it depends on feelings toward the authority that go beyond any rational assessment.

Trust Drivers

Confirming Pages

202 C H A P T E R 7 Trust, Justice, and Ethics

WHY ARE SOME AUTHORITIES MORE TRUSTED THAN OTHERS?

Think about a particular boss or instructor—someone you’ve spent a significant amount of time around. Do you trust that person? Would you be willing to let that person have significant influ-ence over your professional or educational future? For example, would you be willing to let that person serve as a reference for you or write you a letter of recommendation, even though you’d have no way of monitoring what he or she said about you? When you think about the level of trust you feel for that particular authority, what exactly makes you feel that way? This question speaks to the factors that drive trust—the factors that help inspire a willingness to be vulnerable.

TRUST As shown in Figure 7-1 , trust is rooted in three different kinds of factors. Sometimes trust is disposition-based, meaning that your personality traits include a general propensity to trust oth-ers. Sometimes trust is cognition-based, meaning that it’s rooted in a rational assessment of the authority’s trustworthiness. 15 Sometimes trust is affect-based, meaning that it depends on feelings toward the authority that go beyond any rational assessment. 16 The sections that follow describe each of these trust forms in more detail.

7.2In what three sources can trust be rooted?

Trust

Ability

Benevolence

Integrity

TrustPropensity

Feelings towardTrustee

Disposition-Based Trust

Cognition-Based Trust

Affect-Based Trust

Trustworthiness

FIGURE 7-1 Factors That Influence Trust Levels

Sources: Adapted from R.C. Mayer, J.H. Davis, and F.D. Schoorman, “An Integrative Model of Organizational Trust,” Academy of Management Review 20 (1995), pp. 709–34; and D.J. McAllister, “Affect- and Cognition-Based Trust as Foundations for Interpersonal Cooperation in Organizations,” Academy of Management Journal 38 (1995), pp. 24–59.

col2935x_ch07_198-235.indd 202col2935x_ch07_198-235.indd 202 03/11/11 4:57 PM03/11/11 4:57 PM

US Average 21: Make sure to reverse code questions 1 & 4 (so if you answered 5, it becomes 1, 4 becomes 2, 3 stays the same, 2 becomes 4, and 1 becomes 5….and vice versa)

Confirming Pages

OB ASSESSMENTS

203C H A P T E R 7 Trust, Justice, and Ethics

DISPOSITION-BASED TRUST. Disposition-based trust has less to do with a particular author-ity and more to do with the trustor. Some trustors are high in trust propensity —a general expec-tation that the words, promises, and statements of individuals and groups can be relied upon. 17 Some have argued that trust propensity represents a sort of “faith in human nature,” in that trust-ing people view others in more favorable terms than do suspicious people. 18 The importance of trust propensity is most obvious in interactions with strangers, in which any acceptance of vul-nerability would amount to “blind trust.” 19 On the one hand, people who are high in trust propen-sity may be fooled into trusting others who are not worthy of it. 20 On the other hand, those who are low in trust propensity may be penalized by not trusting someone who is actually deserving of it. Both situations can be damaging; as one scholar noted, “We are doomed if we trust all and equally doomed if we trust none.” 21 Where do you stack up on trust propensity? See our OB Assessments feature to find out.

SCORING AND INTERPRETATIONIf your scores sum up to 21 or above, you tend to be trusting of other people, which means you’re often willing to accept some vulnerability to others under conditions of risk. If your scores sum up to 20 or below, you tend to be suspicious of other people, which means you’re rarely willing to accept such vulnerability.

Sources: R.C. Mayer and J.H. Davis, “The Effect of the Performance Appraisal System on Trust for Management: A Field Quasi-Experiment,” Journal of Applied Psychology 84 (1999), pp. 123–36. Copyright © 1999 by the American Psychological Association. Adapted with permission. No further reproduction or distribution is permitted without writ-ten permission from the American Psychological Association. See also F.D. Schoorman, R.C. Mayer, C. Roger, and J.H. Davis. “Empowerment in Veterinary Clinics: The Role of Trust in Delegation.” Presented in a Symposium on Trust at the 11th Annual Conference, Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP), (April 1996), San Diego.

TRUST PROPENSITYAre you a trusting person or a suspicious person by nature? This assessment is designed to mea-sure trust propensity—a dispositional willingness to trust other people. Answer each question using the response scale provided. Then subtract your answers to the boldfaced questions from 6, with the difference being your new answers for those questions. For example, if your original answer for question 4 was “4,” your new answer is “2” (6 – 4). Then sum up your answers for the eight questions. (For more assessments relevant to this chapter, please visit http://connect.mcgraw-hill.com.)

1STRONGLY DISAGREE

2DISAGREE

3NEUTRAL

4AGREE

5STRONGLY

AGREE

1. One should be very cautious with strangers.

2. Most experts tell the truth about the limits of their knowledge.

3. Most people can be counted on to do what they say they will do.

4. These days, you must be alert or someone is likely to take advantage of you.

5. Most salespeople are honest in describing their products.

6. Most repair people will not overcharge people who are ignorant of their specialty.

7. Most people answer public opinion polls honestly.

8. Most adults are competent at their jobs.

col2935x_ch07_198-235.indd 203col2935x_ch07_198-235.indd 203 03/11/11 4:57 PM03/11/11 4:57 PM

Trust Propensities by Nation

Types of Trust Over Time

Justice

• Distributive justice reflects the perceived fairness of decision-making outcomes.– Employees gauge distributive justice by asking whether

decision outcomes, such as pay, rewards, evaluations, promotions, and work assignments, are allocated using proper norms.

• Procedural justice reflects the perceived fairness of decision-making processes. – Fostered when authorities adhere to rules

of fair process.

Effects of Distributive and Procedural Justice

Justice, Cont’d

• Interpersonal justice reflects the perceived fairness of the treatment received by employees from authorities. – Interpersonal justice is fostered

when authorities adhere to two particular rules.• Respect rule pertains to whether

authorities treat employees in a dignified and sincere manner.

• Propriety rule reflects whether authorities refrain from making improper or offensive remarks.

Justice, Cont’d• Informational justice reflects the

perceived fairness of the communications provided to employees from authorities. – Informational justice is fostered

when authorities adhere to two particular rules.• The justification rule

mandates that authorities explain decision-making procedures and outcomes in a comprehensive and reasonable manner.

• The truthfulness rule requires that those communications be honest and candid.

The Effects of Informational and Interpersonal Justice on Theft During a Pay Cut