Why does one trust? A 360-degree perspective on the role of position power in weighting trustworthiness factors.

The purpose of the current paper is to explore the influence of the perceived trustworthiness factors of ability, benevolence and integrity on general and specific trust across supervisors, subordinates and peers with the same focal referent. This study used a 360-degree approach to examine how positional power asymmetries influence the relationship between trustworthiness and trust for a general and situation-specific referent. Data were obtained from military supervisors ( = 200), peers ( = 123), and subordinates ( = 85).