Trust is a valuable resource for working relationships and should be proactively worked on and developed, writes Dr Sian Kelly, Assistant Professor of Organisational Behaviour in the School of Business.

    Most people appreciate the value of having trusting relationships at work. Trust brings a certain level of ease to a relationship; individuals can effectively communicate and collaborate and there is no need to monitor or second-guess one another's actions or motives.

    Yet most people probably don't appreciate that they can do things to proactively support trust to develop in their relationships at work, rather than exclusively waiting for others to trust them over time. Many organisations and leaders emphasise the value of trust, but, in reality, it often exists as an arbitrary construct that people greatly value when it is present in a relationship without knowing exactly how it developed.

    Research tells us that individuals focus on three characteristics when they judge if another person is trustworthy: their ability, benevolence and integrity. Ability is fairly intuitive; does the person perform competently in the domain of interest? The last part is important, as if you work as a social worker, for example, your teammate's ability to play the piano might interest you; however, it should not be the basis on which you judge their ability to perform their job. On the other hand, their communication skills are integral to their success in supporting others and are relevant in assessing their ability to perform as a social worker.

    Benevolence is about another person caring about you and having your best interests at heart. If you perceive that your manager makes considerate decisions that are in your best interests (even if you don't like the outcome!), you can assess that they are a benevolent individual.

    Integrity relates to others being guided by principles that you find acceptable. This is often judged by whether another person's values align with your own, or by looking for behavioural signals such as one following through on their word. In line with what we know from existing research, your assessment of others' ability, benevolence and integrity will translate into whether you perceive them as trustworthy or not.

    While it is useful to understand how judgements about others' trustworthiness are generally formed, it is important to remember that trust is a two-way street, and most work relationships depend on both parties trusting each other. If you are determining how trustworthy the person you work with is, they are also making a similar judgment about you.

    This implies that if you want to proactively support your colleagues to trust you, doing things that signal to them your ability, benevolence and integrity is a worthwhile endeavour. For example, you could demonstrate you are capable of your job by completing your assigned tasks to a high standard or promptly reporting any issues or potential delays. To signal your benevolence and show them that you care about them, you could check in and ask how they are doing or offer them help on a project. To showcase your integrity, you should follow through on your word, so if you say you are going to do something, do it and communicate to the other person that it is done.

    Determining the trustworthiness of another is not the only factor that influences whether individuals trust one another. As is often the case when considering human behaviour, individual differences exist, and research has shown us that some individuals are naturally more trusting than others. However, the overall influence this bears on trust is small and tends to be stronger in the early stages of a relationship when individuals have less information about one another.

    It is also worth noting that individuals tend to look for clues from things aside from the others’ behaviour when deciding to trust them at work. One such factor is their role and the reputation it holds. For example, it is commonly known that doctors undergo many years of formal training, which can lead individuals to make certain assumptions about those working in this role and trust them more readily. Similarly, when individuals work in roles or organisations governed by formal rules, policies, or procedures, others can often find it easier to trust them because they are reassured that their actions are guided by these structures.

    A final factor worth mentioning is perceived similarity. Research tells us that individuals can often connect with and trust people more easily if they perceive others as similar to them. Of course, these things are somewhat out of our control, but it is important to be aware of the factors that influence our decision to trust others at work.

    Such awareness can be valuable in proactively supporting the development of trust with others at work. For example, if you perceive someone you work with as similar to you in some way, emphasise this to them rather than waiting for them to potentially notice, as it will support them to trust you.

    Trust is a valuable resource for working relationships and should be proactively worked on. Show those you work with that you are trustworthy by signalling to them your ability, benevolence and integrity, while at the same time using this same criteria to assess if you should trust them.

    Remember, trust is a two-way street, even in power-imbalanced relationships like with your manager, they also need you to trust them and should act accordingly. Finally, certain cues can help individuals to trust more easily; if these are relevant when you are trying to build trust with others at work, emphasise them. If not, don’t try to force it; your efforts to build trust can be proactive, but should remain authentic.

    This piece originally appeared on RTÉ Brainstorm