Influence of Intra-Organizational Trust on Organizational Outcomes

Abstract

Nowadays, trust is perceived as one of the key factors that can build an organization's competitive advantage, increase the efficiency of its functioning and ability to develop. It can be expected that shaping trust in an organisation will lead to improvements in various aspects of its functioning, especially effectiveness. This issue has not yet been the object of comprehensive scientific research. Hence, this study tackles the issue of the impact of trust on an organization's outcomes. At the same time, two basic categories of trust are distinguished: global (attitudinal/affective) trust (regarding the belief that people in general are trustworthy) and specific (situational/cognitive) trust (modified by an individual's experience). In the latter category, we may distinguish between vertical trust (concerning superior-subordinate relations) and lateral trust (concerning relations between co-workers). The relation between the level of trust and organizational outcomes is examined for each of these categories of trust. The research covers organisations functioning in Poland and is based on a questionnaire. (original abstract)