Given recognition that people hold multiple intersectional social group memberships, there remain limitations in theory about mechanisms connecting multiple stereotypes and trust. We integrate concepts across theories to present the stereotype content-trust model. The model theorizes about how stereotypes associated with multiple social group memberships inform initial trustworthiness evaluations of a target, leading to trust in social versus technical domains.
Conceptual paper.
The stereotype content-trust model proposes that a perceiver’s shared social group memberships with a target will be positively related to their perceptions of the target’s trustworthiness (benevolence/integrity and competence, corresponding to stereotype content of warmth and competence). Perceivers may integrate across the social group memberships that they do not share with a target to derive initial trustworthiness evaluations for a target. These trustworthiness evaluations determine initial levels of trust for social versus technical task work domains in the workplace.
The model incorporates how a perceiver’s own social group memberships and identification with them will inform their trustworthiness evaluations of a target. Addressing the need for intersectional theory, the model extends that stereotype content (representing separate trustworthiness dimensions) will be integrated across a target’s multiple social group memberships to establish initial trustworthiness evaluations of a target. Lastly, by proposing distinct levels of trust for social versus technical domains, the model can be generative for further research, such as investigating the risk of experiencing different forms of discriminatory behaviors.
