What’s Your “Trust Rating”

Orginally published on Tuesday, December 19, 2006 at 6:25 AM
by Todd Rhoades

Harvard Business Review notes research that suggests 80 percent ofAmericans don’t trust corporate executives, and worse, roughly half of allmanagers don’t trust their own leaders. So what does that mean for you aspastor and your ministry leaders? Here are 10 factors that can help youestimate the level of trust you can expect.

The constant corporate morphing in our culture has created a rising sense ofdistrust among people in organizations. Mergers, downsizing, and
right-sizing are all cripplers of human relations. These same people attendour church and often project their fears onto church leaders, whether wedeserve it or not. At the same time, clergy scandals, concern about apastor’s ability to catalyze church change effectively, and the ongoingissues that pastors deal with in terms of counseling and decision making,make creating trust more difficult.

Social psychologist, Robert Hurley, has built a model of trust, based on his15 years of consulting on the topic. According to his model, a leader canpredict whether trust or distrust will be chosen. Writing in the HarvardBusiness Review, Hurley defines trust as “confident reliance on someone whenyou are in a position of vulnerability.” People tend to choose trust afterthey’ve gone through a decision-making process involving factors that can beanalyzed and influenced.

Here are the 10 primary factors that Hurley says can help us determine whypeople trust or fail to trust.

*Risk tolerance:* Some people are naturally risk takers, while others arejust as naturally cautious.

*Level of adjustment:* Some people require a lot of time to develop trust,while others can embrace trust more quickly. Poorly adjusted people tend toperceive numerous threats in life.

*Relative power:* Those in positions of authority are more likely to trustthan those who are not because those in roles of power can punish those whobetray them. If people have little authority, they’re more vulnerable andless likely to trust.

*Security:* The higher the stakes, the harder it is for people to trust.
It’s easier to trust if not much bad is apt to happen; for example, atightrope 6 inches above the ground versus one 60 feet above the ground.

*Number of similarities:* We tend to trust people who are more like us,expressing similar values and common personality traits, than those who arenot like us. The more different we are, the less apt we are to trust.

*Alignment of interests:* People want to know, “How apt is another person tolook after my interests?” Leaders can’t assume that people in theorganization have the same interests.

*Benevolent concern:* The problem among people is not so much evil as it isself-centeredness. People are more apt to trust you if they see that you’rewilling to put others before yourself.

*Capability:* Competence is important. People are less apt to trust you,
even if they like and are like you, if they sense you don’t have thecapability it takes to lead.

*Predictability and integrity:* A person who’s consistent is more apt to betrusted than someone who’s unpredictable. Saying one thing and doing anothercreates distrust. Be careful not to over-promise.

*Level of communication:* Because trust is relational, open and honestcommunication is key. When there’s miscommunication, cover-up, secrets, andguardedness, people are less apt to trust.
Whether we’re trying to build a ministry team, launch a capital campaign, orget people to follow us across a river into a Promised Land, trust is vitalfor any leader. Understanding some of the key factors that cause people totrust or withhold trust can helps us be more savvy regarding ministry andGod’s work.

FOR DISCUSSION: So… how’s your ‘trust rating’?

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About the author:  Alan Nelson is the executive editor of Rev! Magazine (http://www.rev.org), the author of a dozen books, and has been a pastor for 20years. You can reach him at .  From Rev.! Leadership
Update.  For more great stuff, go here:  http://www.rev.org/lu/tmp.asp

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