Resilience or decline of informal networks? Examining the role of trust context in network societies.
Horak, S., Klein, A., Ahlstrom, D., & Li, X. (2024). Resilience or decline of
informal networks? Examining the role of trust context in network societies.
International Business Review, forthcoming.
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ibusrev.2024.102301
Abstract
The nature of informal networks in various societies, and particularly whether
they recede or tend to persist over time, has long been a subject of discussion
in international business studies. However, empirical research on trust in
network-oriented societies, where individuals typically maintain somewhat
different relationships with their in-group, out-group, and non-specified
others, remains limited. Drawing on insights from informal network research and
intergroup contact theory to model trust relationships in network societies, 882
respondents from three network societies -- China, Russia, and South Korea --
were surveyed, and confirmatory factor and path analyses applied. The results
suggest that as network importance increases, both in-group trust and out-group
trust also increase. Individuals who more commonly draw upon out-group trust
ties attach less importance to in-group trust ties. Increases in non-specific
trust, however, are associated with increases in both in-group and out-group
trust, pointing towards the boundary spanning function of non-specific trust.
Consequently, rather than finding a clear indication of whether informal
networks persist or recede, ambivalent trust relationships were observed. This
calls for a reexamination of the conventional ‘either/or’ perspective on the
nature of informal networks. This network heterogeneity can be attributed to
individuals, especially in developing network societies, utilizing a ‘both/and’
approach to trust and networking, and yielding more economic opportunities.
Keywords
Informal network theory, intergroup contact theory, networking, trust,
multiplicity, network society, in-group, out-group.