Asymmetric Trust, Power and Communication Quality in Dyads

Scholars have emphasized the importance of trust for outcomes in relationships within and between organizations. However, empirical evidence on the relationship between trust and outcome variables is mixed, possibly because it fails to consider the bidirectional nature of trust in dyadic relationships. We hypothesize that, whereas mutual trust increases communication quality, asymmetry of trust reduces communication quality, and that power imbalances increase the amount of trust asymmetry. We test these hypotheses in the auditing context using a sample of 218 auditor-client dyads. Polynomial regression analysis reveals that mutual trust is associated with high communication quality, whereas asymmetry of trust is associated with low communication quality. Further, asymmetry of trust increases when the client can exert power in the form of social pressure. Our findings highlight the importance of taking the dispersion of trust and power in the dyad into consideration. We discuss the implications of our find...