The concept of trust has been examined in a wide variety of organizational and social settings, and accordingly conceptualized in different ways see (Hosmer 1995 for a review). For instance, trust in interpersonal relations is defined as the willingness of one person to increase his/her vulnerability to the actions of another person (e.g., Zand 1972); in economic exchanges as the expectation that parties will make a good faith effort to behave in accordance with any commitments, be honest in negotiations, and not take advantage of the other, even when the opportunity is available (Hosmer 1995); and in society as a collective attribute based upon the relationships in a social system (Lewis and Weigert 1985). A review of the literature examining trust points towards two issues relevant to this study. …
