Organizational trustworthiness: An international perspective

Although trust has been widely recognized as a vital component of relationships and a critical element to the success of organizations, the literature describing trust and trustworthiness is known for its varying perspectives and its inconsistencies. Trustworthiness has been identified as a condition precedent to the development of trust. Building upon the established constructs of interpersonal trustworthiness, we propose a related model containing the seven constructs of Competence, Legal Compliance, Responsibility to Inform, Quality Assurance, Procedural Fairness, Interactional Courtesy, and Financial Balance. Citing evidence from trust-related literature, we identify the utility of these seven constructs in encompassing organizational trustworthiness as a subjectively perceived aspect of organizational effectiveness. We analyzed questionnaire data and conducted comparative world-region analyses.