The Influence Of Relationship Closeness On Interpersonal Trust

In traditional Chinese culture,Guanxi and Renqing play an important role in interpersonal trust.Trust is often exercised with immediate or extended family members in China,which implies that relationship closeness could positively affect interpersonal trust.Renqing,a set of Chinese social norms to get along well with others,also has a positive influence on interpersonal trust,especially among acquaintances.Moreover,an individual ’ s trustworthiness,including ability,benevolence,and integrity,are important antecedents of trust.However,little attention has received on trust research which relates Renqing orientation to relationship closeness and perceived trustworthiness.Based on extant theories,this study attempts to build a systematic mechanism by investigating the influence of relationship closeness,perceived trustworthiness and Renqing orientation on interpersonal trust.This study contains two experimental research.The dependent variable is interpersonal trust,and the independent variable is relationship closeness.It also tested the mediation effects of the perception of trustworthiness,including ability,benevolence and integrity,and the moderator of Renqing orientation.The theme scenario selected in Study 1 and Study 2 is the classical investment game(trust game).Besides,all participants completed “Inclusion of Other in the Self scale,IOS”,“Trustworthiness Scale”,“General Trust Scale”,and “CPAI-2”.Study 1 used the single factor experimental design within the subjects through the scenario priming,which included relatives,acquaintances,and strangers.A total of 186 questionnaires were distributed,whereas 151 effective responses were collected.Study 2 refers to the single factor experimental design between the subjects,using a similar paradigm as Study 1,but the participants only needed to complete the items under a certain type of relationship closeness at random.In total,278 effective responses were collected.A novel tool to measure the participants’ perception of the closeness level of the trustee was used,by which relationship closeness was measured as a continuous variable.As to data analysis,descriptive statistics and correlation analysis were conducted by using SPSS 24.Secondly,the mediation effects of perceived ability,benevolence and integrity on interpersonal trust were tested by Bootstrap method.Thirdly,the moderator of Renqing orientation were tested by Repeated measurement analysis of variance and PROCESS SPSS macro.Finally,the differential pattern of interpersonal trust and perceived trustee’s ability,benevolence and integrity on reationship closeness were implemented by one-way ANOVA.The results indicated that:(1)The relationship closeness was positively correlated with interpersonal trust,perceived ability,perceived benevolence and perceived integrity.Interpersonal trust was positively correlated with perceived ability,perceived benevolence and perceived integrity.(2)The relationship closeness,from strangers to relatives,can positively predict interpersonal trust.It can also be indirectly implemented through the perception of ability,benevolence,and integrity.(3)The individual’s Renqing orientation had a moderating effect on the closeness level and the trustee’s ability and integrity.Besides,the Renqing orientation regulated the indirect effect of the closeness level on interpersonal trust through the perception of individual ability and integrity.Renqing orientation usually played a role in acquaintances.(4)Individual interpersonal trust and perceived trustee’s benevolence and integrity showed the differential pattern of relatives > acquaintances > strangers relationship.The scores of perceived ability was no significant difference between relatives and acquaintances,but it was significantly higher than strangers.This study developed a new tool to measure the relationship closeness,which can restore the inherent continued,dynamic and developmental characteristics of the relationship closeness.The tool can not only compare the differences among the different people under the same classification,but also provide a new measurement for the dynamic change of a certain relationship in the future.The relationship closeness could determine the interpersonal behavior through the evaluation of the others’ trustworthiness,which implies that a good trustworthiness trait can weaken the relationship closeness effect on interpersonal trust and has a positive role in promoting Chinese interpersonal communication.Moreover,Renqing orientation had a moderating effect on the overall model,individuals with high Renqing orientation had higher interpersonal trust and cognition of trustworthiness,and the role was mainly reflected in acquaintances.It indicates that Renqing orientation can play a positive role in building a harmonious society.