Leadership in Chaordic Organizations

Chapter 3

How to Build Trust

B. E. White and B. G. McCarter

There are two fundamental components regarding the object^* of one’s trust: (1) freedom from fear that the person, group, or organization will cause you, your group, or your organization physical, material, or psychological harm^†; and (2) confidence in the veracity and accuracy of information provided by the person, group, or organization.^‡

As suggested in the definition, two types of trust are important for information sharing: benevolence-based trust, where an individual, group, or organization will not intentionally harm another of the same type, and competence-based trust, where an individual, group, or organization is perceived to be knowledgeable^* in some area (Levin et al. 2002, ...