Identification of factors related to trust formation in construction supply chains

Abstract

Trust is indicated as one of the main determinants of cooperation and a factor contributing to building successful and long-term supply chain relationships. However, the concept of trust is abstract and multidimensional, which means that it is difficult to measure, and the level of trust should be estimated taking into the consideration of many aspects at once. The main purpose of the paper was the identification of observable trust indicators in inter-organisational relations in construction supply chains, as well as factors closely related to trust and their observable indicators. The research was based on qualitative (focus group interview) and quantitative (230 computer assisted telephone interviews) studies conducted among construction companies. The study is the contribution to the area of research concerning trust in supply chains. The main result is the elaboration of scales that enable the measurement of inter-organisational trust and factors associated with trust.