System Wide Trust: A Possible Contagion Effect

Abstract

System Wide Trust (SWT) theory states that when dealing with independent components of one systems, a failure in one component can have a negative effect on the person’s trust in other components. The purpose of this study was to examine the extent of the declining trust and whether the failure of an automated aid on board a commercial airline flight would have a contagion effect on the trust in other aids and human entities. The study included 392 participants from the United States and  India, who were presented with a hypothetical scenario wherein the automated system that operates the oxygen masks on a commercial flight had failed. Participants were asked to rate their trust in the failed  automated aid, as well as four other independent devices/aids on board the aircraft. They were then asked to rate their trust in the pilot, co-pilot, flight attendants, the maintenance manager, and the CEO of the airline. The SWT effect as well as the contagion effect was found to exist for both countries of origin thus suggesting that passengers treat all the automated aids and human entities involved in a commercial airline flight as part of one system. The cross cultural analysis between the two nationalities showed that American participants were more extreme in their responses under both scenarios as compared to their Indian counterparts. Additionally, a mediation analysis revealed that affect (emotion) was a mediating factor in the relationship between the condition and the trust ratings.