Trust under watch: Relational models and the context-dependent nature of monitoring

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dc.abstract.enTrust and control are often portrayed as opposing forces in a hydraulic relationship. Across six preregistered experiments (total N = 4086) conducted in Australia, South Africa, the UK, and the US, we demonstrate that this relationship is context-dependent rather than universal. We examined how verification monitoring—a subtle form of control—affects trust in communal sharing (CS) versus market pricing (MP) relationships. Participants found monitoring more acceptable in MP than CS relationships (Experiment 1), and its introduction shifted perceptions of CS relationships toward a more market-like orientation (Experiments S1-S2). From the trustee's perspective, monitoring reduced trust in both relational contexts; from the trustor's view, it only undermined trust in CS relationships (Experiment 2). These patterns generalized across cultures, held across different trust levels (Experiment 3), and extended to behavioral choices (Experiment 4). Our findings challenge the universality of the hydraulic model, showing that while control mechanisms undermine trust in communal contexts where they violate norms of unconditional support, their effects in market contexts depend on whose perspective is considered—trustors or trustees.
dc.affiliationInstitute of Psychology
dc.affiliationWydział Psychologii we Wrocławiu
dc.affiliationInstytut Psychologii
dc.contributor.authorKuzminska, Anna O.
dc.contributor.authorKhan, Maryam
dc.contributor.authorKesebir, Pelin
dc.contributor.authorZaleśkiewicz, Tomasz
dc.contributor.authorGąsiorowska, Agata
dc.date.access2026-05-06
dc.date.accessioned2026-05-08T10:18:08Z
dc.date.available2026-05-08T10:18:08Z
dc.date.created2026-04-27
dc.date.issued2026-05-06
dc.description.accesstimeat_publication
dc.description.grantnumber2021/41/B/HS6/03104
dc.description.granttitleZaufanie jako zjawisko polimorficzne. Psychologiczna specyfika zaufania w relacjach wspólnotowych i rynkowych
dc.description.physical1-13
dc.description.sdgGoodHealthAndWellBeing
dc.description.sdgReducedInequalities
dc.description.versionfinal_published
dc.description.volume125
dc.identifier.doi10.1016/j.jesp.2026.104935
dc.identifier.issn0022-1031
dc.identifier.urihttps://share.swps.edu.pl/handle/swps/2329
dc.identifier.weblinkhttps://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S002210312600065X?via%3Dihub
dc.languageen
dc.pbn.affiliationpsychologia
dc.rightsCC-BY
dc.rights.questionYes_rights
dc.share.articleOTHER
dc.subject.enTrust
dc.subject.enControl
dc.subject.enMonitoring
dc.subject.enRelational models theory
dc.subject.enCommunal sharing
dc.subject.enMarket pricing
dc.swps.sciencecloudsend
dc.titleTrust under watch: Relational models and the context-dependent nature of monitoring
dc.title.journalJournal of Experimental Social Psychology
dc.typeJournalArticle
dspace.entity.typeArticle