Trust building within and across cultures: A study of Guinea

• Main Author: SUN, Xiushun
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2022
• Subjects: China; Guinea; within culture; across culture; supervisor; subordinate; interpersonal trust; trust in the organization; performance; Organizational Behavior and Theory; Sociology of Culture
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/etd_coll/395; https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/context/etd_coll/article/1393/viewcontent/Trust_building_within_and_across_cultures_A_study_of_Guinea_Sun_Xiushun.pdf
• Institution: Singapore Management University

With the development of African economy and the increasing Chinese MNCs operating in Africa, there is a need to have a better understanding of the trust relationships between Chinese expatriates and African HCNs in the organizational environment. We adopt both qualitative and quantitative approaches to understand the trust relationships between Chinese supervisors, Guinea supervisors and Guinea subordinates in a Chinese MNC’s subsidiary in Guinea, compare the difference within culture and across culture, and examine how the interpersonal trust and the trust in the organization affect employees’ job performance. In study 1, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 19 Chinese supervisors, 20 Guinea supervisors and 19 Guinea subordinates working in the two main sectors of the Chinese MNC. We found that the importance of the various trust antecedents is different for Chinese expatriates and Guinea workers. Chinese expatriates put more weightage on ability and integrity while Guinea workers care more about benevolence. We also compared the interpersonal trust and trust in the organization, and observed different antecedents and outcomes. Drawing on the insights of study 1, we proposed a model of interpersonal trust within and across cultures, trust in the organization and the employees’ performance. In study 2, 182 Guinea subordinates and their direct Chinese/Guinea supervisors completed the survey of interpersonal trust and the trust in the organization to test the model. Regressions and SEM were used to examine the proposed hypothesis. The results showed that Guinea subordinate’s trust in the organization increases their performance; Guinea subordinate’s trust in the organization plays a mediating role between their trust in Guinea supervisors and their performance; Guinea supervisor’s trust in Chinese supervisor positively affects Guinea subordinate’s trust in the organization, and moderates the positive relationship between Guinea subordinate’s trust in the organization and their performance.