Control‐Trust Dynamics during Socialization: Lessons from Workgroup Hazing

Kenneth M. Sweet, Rachel E. Sturm, Mortaza Zare and Marcus A. Valenzuela

Journal of Management Studies, 2023, vol. 60, issue 8, 1962-1985

Abstract: A key stream of research in the control‐trust literature concerns how control builds trust. Yet, the iterative nature between control building trust and trust impacting control is poorly understood. Early formation of trust in work relationships is important because it pervades future interactions and trust‐building attempts, and we join this conversation by examining how workgroups can actively constrain newcomer behaviour through control to build trust during socialization. Specifically, our theory building focuses on the unofficial socialization practice of workgroup hazing to explore how workgroups can systematically force a circumstance in which newcomers must demonstrate their trustworthiness to the workgroup before they can be trusted as insiders of the group. Through this process, the perceived trustworthiness of newcomers affects how the workgroup subsequently controls them. By examining the perspective of the workgroup, we uncover two key mechanisms that impact these control‐trust dynamics in how workgroups often socialize newcomers: (1) there is a shift in vulnerability from the workgroup to the newcomer, and (2) person‐group fit serves as a proxy for the trustworthiness of the newcomer. We conclude with an agenda for future control‐trust research given our theory building.

Date: 2023
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