Can general and particularistic types of trust mix? Advancing the trust (dis-) continuity debate in a Chinese context

Sven Horak, Andreas Klein and Xiaomei Li

International Journal of Emerging Markets, 2020, vol. 17, issue 5, 1273-1291

Abstract: Purpose - We challenge the discontinuity (also called incompatibility) hypothesis of generalized and particularistic trust, suggesting that the two types of trust are incompatible. This view is problematic because if so, it remains unclear, for instance, how communities scoring high in particularistic trust can ever develop further when transferring trust to spheres outside the community is not an option. In this research, we explore the potential permeability of different types of trust in an emerging market context using the case of China. Design/methodology/approach - Using a purposeful sampling technique, we gathered data among Chinese professionals (n = 290) in the Jingjinji Metropolitan Region in Tianjin. We analyzed the data by performing structural equation modeling. Findings - As we identify interdependencies between generalized and particularistic types of trust, our results speak in favor of the continuity hypothesis. We find that the more people trust other people from an outside group (out-group trust), the less they trust quasi-familiar others (in-group trust). Further, in-group trust increases once the environment urges people to engage in informal network (guanxi)-based transactions. Originality/value - Advancing the common view of China being a typical low-trust society, in which distrust in strangers (outsiders) prevails, we find a recent trend of an increase in general trust, which might lead to increases of out-group and in-group trust alike. Contrary to the wide spread idea thatguanxiis declining in the present day, we findguanxito be persistent.

Keywords: Trust continuity; General trust; Particularistic trust; In-group trust; Out-group trust; China; Informal institutions; Emerging markets; Guanxi importance (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.110 ... d&utm_campaign=repec (text/html)
https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.110 ... d&utm_campaign=repec (application/pdf)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eme:ijoemp:ijoem-07-2020-0745

DOI: 10.1108/IJOEM-07-2020-0745

Access Statistics for this article

International Journal of Emerging Markets is currently edited by Prof Ilan Alon

More articles in International Journal of Emerging Markets from Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Emerald Support ().