www.sharexxx.net - free books & magazines

242 Pavlou
terms of the dimensions of credibility and benevolence. Drawing from the literature
on the sources and cognitive processes through which trust engenders, I propose
that impersonal trust is associated with the dimension of credibility, and four
antecedents of impersonal trust are then extracted. Furthermore, I examine how
impersonal trust influences satisfaction, perceived risk, anticipated continuity and
favorable pricing. More specifically, I propose a conceptual framework to describe
a set of interrelationships between the antecedents and consequences of impersonal
trust by attempting to answer these research questions: 1) What is the nature of
impersonal trust in B2B eCommerce? 2) Which are the antecedents and consequences
of impersonal trust?
The chapter is structured as follows: the next section reviews the current
literature on trust, describes the nature and dimensions of impersonal trust, and
portrays how a set of trust-building cognitive processes engenders credibility. A
conceptual framework that examines the antecedents and consequences of impersonal
trust is then developed in the context of B2B exchanges. Finally, the
theoretical and managerial implications of this research are discussed in terms of the
future of B2B eCommerce, and recommendations for future research are proposed.
CONCEPTUAL DEVELOPMENT
Trust is important because it is a key element of social capital and has been
related to desirable economic and social outcomes (Arrow, 1974; Geyskens et al.,
1998; Zaheer et al., 1998) and a source of competitive advantage (Barney and
Hansen, 1994). Trust has also been considered to reduce opportunistic behavior
and transaction costs, resulting in more efficient governance (Bromiley and
Cummings, 1995). Sociologists argue that buyer-supplier relations are embedded
in a social context that modifies economic activity in important ways (Granovetter,
1985). For example, it can be intertwined with markets to produce “relational
contracts” to ensure flexibility and opportunity (Macneil, 1980), and with hierarchies
to produce “hierarchical contracts” to ensure stability and equity (Stinchcombe,
1985). In terms of theory building, trust-embedded economic theories provide a
richer explanation of interfirm relationships than trust-absent theories, and also
improve their descriptive and explanatory power (Beccera and Gupta, 1999). Even
if rational analysis of risk can only study a calculative cooperation, independent of
trust (Williamson, 1985), some authors did manage to merge economic and
sociological theories and highlighted the role of trust in exchange relationships
(Gulati 1995; Ouchi, 1980). In general, the role of trust is of fundamental
importance and has an impact on all levels of buyer-supplier relationships.
Copyright © 2003, Idea Group Inc. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written
permission of Idea Group Inc. is prohibited.