How does trust in multiple trustees influence disclosure of workplace conflict? Testing the Perceived Influence Model of Trust

An emerging area of trust research considers trust in multiple trustees, largely examining how trust in multiple trustee aggregates additively. Few studies have considered potential non-additive ways an individual trustor might weigh trust in each of the multiple trustees, depending on the situation-context, specifically what is needed from the trustees to address the risk. We conducted an experimental vignette study to test aspects of the Perceived Influence Model of Trust. This model predicts different trust effects depending on how a trustor weighs trust in each trustee, described as additive, compensatory, and compulsory trust effects. The vignette focused on workplace conflict because of its ubiquity and the importance of trust for resolution. Participants imagined themselves as an employee (trustor) deciding whether to risk disclosure of a conflict with a co-worker to two supervisors (trustees) before the supervisors conduct a performance evaluation of the employee to determine if they receive a promotion. The study contained a manipulation of the task requirements – what is needed from the trustees to achieve the trustor’s desired end. The trustworthiness cues of the two trustees were also manipulated to indicate high or low trustworthiness. ANCOVA analyses supported a three-way interaction effect, demonstrating the importance of the trustees’ task requirements in determining how trust in one trustee changes the effects of trust in another trustee on the trusting outcome. These results provide initial support for the Perceived Influence Model of Trust and provide a foundation for researchers seeking an enhanced understanding of multi-trustee trust in situations involving conflict.