Tag: trust

I recently assigned students to explore the topic of trust. Today I graded one of the best student papers I have ever received. I am including just one page from the paper because a) the concepts are useful and b) it is model of excellence. I bolded and underlined the important concepts for clarity.

Trust Factors in Leadership

            Trust is a multidimensional and dynamic construct (Klaussner, 2012; Legood, Thomas, & Sacramento, 2016) evident from the different approaches, perspectives, and theories found in trust research.  The concept has also been described by researchers as a frame of mind, or “psychological state,” indicating its dynamic nature (Rousseau, Sitkin, Burt, & Camerer, 1998; Clark & Payne, 2006).  In his definition, Zand (1972) claims trust requires the presence of at least two people.  Leadership also requires the presence of two people, a leader and at least one follower (Rost, 1991).  If both trust and leadership require a minimum of two people, then it can be surmised that the relationship between the two is at the heart of leadership trust. Gordon and Gilley (2012) support the notion that trust is “a personal relationship between the leader and follower” (p. 29).  Based on this connection, it would make sense that fostering the relationship fosters trust.  It then also makes sense that the factors identified in research on leadership trust are highly related to treating others with care and value, and behaving in a competent and ethical manner that serves the other person.

            So what are the factors that contribute to trust in leadership and foster the leadership relationship?  Literature on the topic identify care (Huntsman & Greer, 2019; Sweeney, 2010), authenticity (Men & Stacks, 2014; Peus et al., 2012; Hieh & Wang, 2015), ethical behaviors (Engelbrecht, Heine, & Mahembe, 2014; Mozumder, 2018), fairness (Clark & Payne, 2006; Klaussner, 2012), communication (Hieh & Wang, 2015; Gordon & Gilley, 2012; Stubbendorff & Overstreet, 2019), ability (Clark & Payne, 2006), and consistency (Hieh & Wang, 2015; Sherwood & Depaolo, 2005; Stubbendorff & Overstreet, 2019) as some of the main trust factors in leadership.  These can be grouped into what Clark and Payne (2006) consider character-based trust. In addition, one’s propensity to trust (Colquitt, Scott, & LePine, 2007), and a leader’s trust in their follower (Gukdo Byun et al., 2017) are also identified in research as factors associated with trust in leadership.  Because these factors are interpersonal nature, they can be categorized as relational-based trust (Clark & Payne, 2006).  Regardless of their characterizations, each of the factors can be grouped into the three main themes found in the literature on trust: Benevolence (Daly & Chrispeels, 2008; de la Garza et al., 2019; Hsieh & Wang, 2015; Mayer, Davis, & Schoorman, 1995; Rusaw, 2000), integrity (Clark & Payne, 2006; Daly & Chrispeels, 2008; de la Garza et al., 2019; Mayer, et al., 1995), and vulnerability (Clark & Payne, 2006; Klaussner, 2012; Mayer et al., 1995; Stubbendorff & Overstreet, 2019; Huntsman & Greer, 2019).

My feedback to this student was as follows:

Jaime (Ohno) Porter is the student who wrote it. You can see from the writing that the paper was heavily cited. Jaime wasn’t making this up. It was the result of eight weeks of spade work. This is what the academic research says about trust and it was excellent.

So why don’t we see more excellence? It is hard to understand. We know excellence when we see it. We also know that if you provide excellent work long enough, you will eventually be recognized for it as this student was with her A grade.

Too many students settle for good enough. This student never did. She was constantly working to improve, asking questions, and refusing to settle for anything less than the best work she could submit. When the time comes to ask for a letter of recommendation, I am going to include the link to this post in the letter.

Vince Lombardi said, “The quality of a person’s life is in direct proportion to their commitment to excellence, regardless of their chosen field of endeavor.” Strive for excellence.

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Dr. Darin Gerdes is a tenured  Professor of Management in the College of  Business at Charleston Southern University.

All ideas expressed on www.daringerdes.com are his own.

FTC Disclosure: When I refer to a book, I often add a link to Amazon (#ad) so you can purchase it easily. I may earn a few cents if you buy it, but I never recommend any books unless they are worth reading.

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