Read the full-text of this article for free

Title: Trust and organizational information flow

Authors: Scott B. Droege; Jonathan R. Anderson; Matthew Bowler

Addresses: Author address listing can be found in the "About the Authors" section at the end of the article.

Abstract: This paper examines the role of trust in transferring information within an organization. Two forms of trust (initial trust and gradually formed trust) are suggested as consequential to information flows. Research on trust and social networks is considered with respect to the role of trust in increasing information transfer through structural holes in the presence of the potential for opportunistic behavior. Propositions are offered suggesting that trust increases the accuracy and quantity of information available to receivers; this occurs in proportion to the level of trust between the information provider, the information receiver and the actor who bridges a structural hole.

Keywords: Trust; information flow; organizational information; structural holes.

DOI: 10.1504/JBM.2003.141100

Journal of Business and Management, 2003 Vol.9 No.1, pp.45 - 59

Published online: 05 Sep 2024 *