Cultural influences on trust orientation: Implications for international business relationship

While "virtually every commercial transaction has within itself an element of trust" (Arrow, 1972), trust is particularly critical in the international context where individuals may not share the same underlying values and norms. Although discussed at some length in the literature, the concept of trust is incompletely developed. The possibility that trust manifests itself differently across cultures has not been addressed. This study focuses on how culture influences individual trust predispositions and intentions.;Individualism-collectivism, as a cultural dimension, was operationalized using cultural/national orientation (i.e., the individualistic U.S. vs. the collectivistic Mexico). Trust was treated as a multi-dimensional construct, consisting of three dimensions (i.e., relationship, institutional agent and caution). Two sets of trust measures were used to test the cultural linkage--one, consisting of universalistic individual difference measures; the other, particularistic behavioral intention measures. As a variable influencing the linkage, social distance was experimentally manipulated. The research sample consisted of 177 U.S. students and 153 Mexican students.;Members of the more individualistic U.S. culture tended to accord greater value to the institutional agent and caution dimensions than did members of the more collectivistic Mexican culture; the converse was the case for the relationship dimension. Though the valuation of trust construct dimensions differed cross-culturally, the construct itself was found to have cultural uniformity. Trust dimensions were ranked identically, even though the rank order changed with variation in perspective; i.e., universalistic (1-caution, 2-institutional agent, 3-relationship) or particularistic (1-relationship, 2-institutional agent, 3-caution). Social distance had a similar influence on trust in both cultures--a disproportionate emphasis on the relationship dimension at the 'friendship' level; a more balanced emphasis on the dimensions at the 'stranger' levels; and limited distinction between the intracultural and intercultural 'stranger' levels. The multidimensionality of trust in both cultures was supported by factor analysis.