Management Professor's Book Emphasizes the Moral Dimension of Trust and Also Practical Applications

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, UNITED STATES, June 29, 2023/EINPresswire.com/ -- Across the social sciences and even in philosophy, trust is most often characterized in terms of expectations, probabilities, and economic calculations.

But a new book by Albers School of Business and Economics management and philosophy professor Marc Cohen emphasizes the moral dimension of trust. The book, 'The Nature and Practice of Trust' published by Routledge, also addresses practical applications in the context of social relationships, economic systems, and within business organizations.

Management professors, sociologists, and philosophers describe the benefits of trust in material or economic terms—trust can make business transactions less costly, trust in organizations fosters creativity and improves productivity. In addition to these benefits, Cohen argues trust relationships are intrinsically good because they foster the development of the moral community.

"When one person trusts another to do something, the first relies on the second’s commitment(s)," says the book's introduction. "So, trust reflects—and is a product of—agreement about the commitments and obligations that bind persons who live and work together. These commitments and obligations can be implicit, but building (or rebuilding) trust often requires making these commitments and obligations explicit, defining the terms of cooperation."

Part 1 of 'The Nature and Practice of Trust' argues that this account of trust better explains our actual trust practices, and it draws out connections with both the philosophy and social science literatures. It also describes the process of creating trust relationships with reference to trust invitations. Part 2 addresses practical applications of the account defended here, in the context of social relationships, economic systems, and within business organizations. These applications emphasize the material benefits and the intrinsic ones.

'The Nature and Practice of Trust' will appeal to scholars and advanced students working in ethics, social and political philosophy, and the social sciences. Chapter six from the book is available for free on the Routledge website.

Cohen's essay on the Albers' Center for Business Ethics website summarizes research showing how to build a culture of trust in business.

About Marc Cohen

Marc A. Cohen is a management professor at Seattle University's Albers School of Business and Economics, with a shared appointment in the college's Department of Philosophy. He also serves as program director of the school's MBA program. Cohen's published work has appeared in American Philosophical Quarterly, Social Theory and Practice, Ethical Theory and Moral Practice, Journal of Business Ethics, and The Routledge Handbook of Trust and Philosophy (2020).

About Seattle University's Center for Business Ethics

Established in 2011, the Center for Business Ethics partners with business leaders, scholars, faculty, students, and alumni to critically examine ethical issues in business and the role business can play in advancing the common good.

Alicia Kan
Albers School of Business and Economics
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