Trust: The Foundations

12 Sept

Understanding the foundations of trust is simpler than you might think.

In this guide, we'll explore the key elements of trust: what it is, why it matters, and how it forms. Keep reading to learn about vulnerability, its role in trust, and the foundational elements (integrity, benevolence, and capability) that inspire trust.

What is trust?

Trust is the willingness to be vulnerable based on expected behaviours (1).

To know what trust is, we must experience and understand vulnerability first. A willingness to be vulnerable requires risking being let down or hurt.

Vulnerability comes in three forms:

Emotional Vulnerability: Sharing your feelings and opening up emotionally to others.
Relational Vulnerability: Inviting others to connect or engage more deeply.
Physical Vulnerability: Displaying comfort or discomfort through body language and non-verbal cues.

In each of these scenarios, the person you’re being vulnerable with could harm you in some way. They could judge, reject, isolate, undermine, or exploit you for your vulnerability.

So why do it?

If we assume that the person we’re being vulnerable with will respond with behaviours we expect to not harm us, but strengthen us and our relationship with them, the rewards outsize the risks.

When our vulnerability is received well, we’re rewarded with:

Safety and security in challenging environments.
Deeper connections between friends, family, and colleagues.
Growth through sharing insights and the collective pursuit of goals.

So how do we know that someone will respond well to our vulnerability?

We look for three things in them:

1. Integrity: Will they do what is good?

2. Benevolence: Will they be considerate?

3. Capabilities: Are they brilliant?

These three things are the foundational elements of trustworthiness.

The Elements of Trust and Trustworthiness — *The Elements of Trustworthiness*

Integrity, Benevolence, and Capabilities have been established empirically as the elements of trust through literature reviews over six decades of trust research.

We are willing to be vulnerable with people if we trust them. We experience the benefits of vulnerability when we are trustworthy.

Trust is an emotional state, a feeling of confidence and security in another person or entity. In contrast, trustworthiness is tangible, observable, and measurable through actions and behaviours.

While integrity, benevolence, and capability are essential for trustworthiness, there's another factor at play: the inclination to trust. This is your tendency to trust others, influenced by your past experiences, personality, and cultural background.

Here are some analogies to understand the differences between trust, trustworthiness, and inclination:

Trust: Imagine trust as a bridge that allows you to cross a river safely and reach your destination. It's a leap of faith, an emotional investment in a relationship, based on the expectation that the bridge will hold your weight.

Trustworthiness: Trustworthiness is the sturdiness of the bridge, the quality of the materials, and the skill of the engineers who built it. It's the evidence, the track record, that supports your belief that the bridge is safe to cross.
Inclination: The inclination to trust is your willingness to step onto the bridge, influenced by your past experiences with bridges and your confidence in their safety.

Why is trust important?

At its core, business and society is simply people influencing other people.

Employees influencing colleagues.
Employees influencing customers.
Leaders influencing employees.
Leaders influencing stakeholders.
Groups influencing other groups.

However, if these people are corrupt, prioritise their self-interest, incompetent, and distrustful - it creates a toxic culture where others feel used, misled, and undervalued.

This manipulative influence erodes the very social fabric of a group, turning relationships into transactions and reducing the organisation to a fragile entity that is reactive, distrustful, and short-sighted.

In the long run, this fragility leaves the organisation vulnerable to collapse or irrelevance.

Trust is the single most impactful lever to pull to change human relationships. Trust is the foundation upon which people working in groups towards common goals rely upon (2). People are attracted to anything that makes them feel trusted and trustworthy.

This is why trust acts as a powerful ‘attractor’.

Trust-filled relationships encourage deeper connections, foster collaboration, and inspire commitment. Trustworthy organisations attract loyal customers, talented employees, and long-term partnerships. Trust-rich cultures amplify engagement, reduce friction, and productive risk-taking. Pulling people toward mutually beneficial outcomes.

Trust is like gravity. It’s an invisible and ‘simple’ force that brings about:

Stability: It provides security in our personal lives and a foundation for collaboration in organisations.
Connection: It attracts us to others, forming bonds between friends, family, and colleagues.
Growth: It empowers us to take risks, share ideas, and reach our full potential.

How is trust perceived?

We experience trust both affectionately and rationally (3).

Affectionate Trust stems from emotional bonds, a sense of security, and belief in someone's good intentions. It often develops in close relationships, such as with family, friends, and romantic partners. This type of trust is characterised by:

Care: You have a positive emotional connection.
Safety and Security: You believe the person won't harm you.
Good Intentions: You trust their motivations and have their best interests at heart.

You experience this when you trust your spouse even when you’ve been apart due to a strong emotional bond.

Rational Trust is built on evidence, competence, and reliability. This type of trust is characterised by:

Competence: The person has the skills and knowledge to deliver.
Reliability: They keep their promises and commitments.
Honesty: They act with integrity and truthfulness.
Predictability: Their actions are consistent and understandable.

This looks like trusting a colleague who consistently delivers high-quality work or a mechanic with a proven track record.

The costs of distrust

The symptoms of distrust are being felt in all areas of life worldwide in what’s known as the Trust Deficit Disorder.

These symptoms include:

Political Division: Rising political polarisation fuels mistrust and hampers cooperation.
Economic Inequality: The growing gap between rich and poor creates resentment and instability.
Technology's Dark Side: Technology isolates us in echo chambers and fosters hostility.
Pandemic Isolation: COVID-19 deepened isolation, straining our ability to form and maintain trusting bonds.

This distrust double the cost of doing business in the following ways (4).

Relational Costs: Disengagement, Conflict, Turnover.
Strategic Costs: Stagnation, Delays, Oversight, and Reputational Damage.
Societal Costs: Erosion of Social Capital, Decreased Public Confidence, Inequality, and Exclusion.

The business case for trust.

Over 60 years of trust research highlights the business case for trust in three statistics (5):

100% increase in Team Performance.
450% increase in Business Performance.
1200% increase in GDP performance.

Trust changes everything.

Trust is essential for strong personal connections as it allows for:

Open Communication: Trust encouragesopen communication without fear of judgement.
Conflict Resolution: Trust enables empathetic approaches to disagreements.
Life Satisfaction: High trust in relationships is linked to increased happiness.

When there is trust in the room, people feel safe, open, and connected. They are more willing to collaborate, share ideas, and take risks, knowing they’re supported. This leads to a positive atmosphere, fostering stronger relationships and higher productivity.

Trust enhances performance and fosters a healthy work environment through:

Increased Sales: 88% of customers say trust is key in purchasing decisions.
Innovation and Creativity: Psychological safety, a trust component, is crucial for high-performing teams.
Enhanced Productivity: High-trust companies have higher productivity and lower turnover.

When there is trust in an organisation, employees feel empowered, valued, and engaged. They are more likely to collaborate, innovate, and take ownership of their work, leading to improved performance, loyalty, and overall organisational success. Trust creates a culture where people feel secure and aligned with the organisation's goals.

Trust forms the foundation of a thriving society through:

Stronger Social Bonds: People are more willing to help each other and participate in community initiatives.

Economic Prosperity: High-trust societies have higher GDP growth and lower corruption.
Improved Well-being: High social trust is linked to better mental and physical health and lower crime.

In a society built on trust, people feel safe, valued, and connected. Collaboration thrives, communities grow stronger, and there is greater social cohesion. Trust fosters transparency, accountability, and fairness, enabling societies to navigate challenges, embrace change, and build resilient, inclusive environments for all.

Actionable steps to build trust.

Build and maintain trust in all your interactions by being reliable, empathetic, and skilled.

Here are 4 ways you can start building trust today:

Prioritise Transparency: Clearly articulate goals and pathways to achieve them.
Foster Empathy: Share in the feelings and perspectives of others.
Maintain Reliability: Deliver on promises and commitments consistently.
Seek and Provide Constructive Feedback: Use feedback mechanisms for continuous improvement.
Tell Stories: Craft trust-based narratives to establish what matters most to you, your team.

These are the main steps in Part 3 of The Art & Science of Trust.

What Mattered Most

Trust is essential for healthy relationships and high-performing teams.
Trust is based on vulnerability.
There are three foundational elements of trust: Integrity, Benevolence, and Capability.
Trustworthiness is measurable and observable through actions.
The inclination to trust is influenced by past experiences and personal background.
Trust influences both feelings and rational thoughts.
Distrust comes with high costs—both relational and strategic.
Trust is a key driver of performance and business success.
Building trust requires transparency, empathy, reliability, and feedback.