Gender Differences in Trust Dynamics: Women Trust More than Men Following a Trust Violation
Haselhuhn, M. P., Kennedy, J. A., Kray, L. J., Van Zant, A., & Schweitzer, M. E. (2014). Gender differences in trust dynamics: Women trust more than men following a trust violation. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 56, 104-109.
Vanderbilt Owen Graduate School of Management Research Paper No. 2532683
24 Pages Posted: 3 Dec 2014 Last revised: 2 Nov 2015
Date Written: December 1, 2014
Abstract
Despite the importance of trust for efficient social and organizational functioning, transgressions that betray trust are common. We know little about the personal characteristics that affect the extent to which transgressions actually harm trust. In this research, we examine how gender moderates responses to trust violations. Across three studies, we demonstrate that following a violation, women are both less likely to lose trust and more likely to restore trust in a transgressor than men. Women care more about maintaining relationships than men, and this greater relational investment mediates the relationship between gender and trust dynamics.
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