A conceptualization of the trust formation process and an investigation of the trustworthiness of community pharmacists using a practical reasoning framework

It is the thesis of the study that the model of belief processing developed by Smith, Benson, and Curley is helpful in understanding how trustworthiness beliefs are formed, and that this understanding is useful in developing ways to facilitate trust between pharmacists and patients. The purpose of the study is twofold: to determine what information people cognitively process to form trustworthiness beliefs toward pharmacists in dispensing and patient care scenarios and to assess the relationship between perceived risk and the trustworthiness belief formation process. Subjects for the study were University of Mississippi staff employees. The study was conducted in two phases: a qualitative phase and a quantitative phase. The qualitative phase was conducted using two focus groups. The quantitative phase was conducted using an experimental design. Subjects were randomly selected and assigned to one of the three treatment groups. The subjects in each treatment group received a different pharmacy scenario (manipulation), and each subject's response to the scenario was measured using a self-administered questionnaire. Two different questionnaires were needed to collect the data necessary to answer the research questions; therefore, two separate data collections were conducted. The data from each data collection were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) for Windows 8.0, Standard Version. Analyses were completed to test the 12 alternative hypotheses.; The model of belief processing was shown to be useful in studying the formation of trustworthiness beliefs toward pharmacists. Specifically it was useful in categorizing the information used to form beliefs. Perceived risk did not manifest itself in the number of or importance of evidence statements and claims as described by the model of belief processing. Also, the findings indicated that the formation of a trustworthiness belief contributes to a consistent decrease in perceived risk. Overall, the results provided answers to the research questions and identified many more opportunities for further research. Future studies that investigate the role of risk in belief processing, the use of arguments in forming trustworthiness beliefs, and the role of trustworthiness beliefs in mitigating risk need to be conducted.