The dark side of trust: When trust becomes a ‘poisoned chalice'

Trust is typically portrayed as inherently beneficial to all concerned. Yet only a partial picture of trust is being considered. We explore how trust can be problematic, and can even be seen as a ‘poisoned chalice'. We argue that unwelcome obligations arising from trust's presumed principle of reciprocal obligation provides the explanatory mechanism for trust's true ‘dark side'. From this we derive a model of trust development that highlights its benign and malign possibilities. We then present five familiar scenarios from organisational life to illustrate our model. The implications of our analysis extend many of the debates in the trust literature, on whether trust is a decision or an action; trust and control, and which aspect of the process should dominate parties' thinking.