Trust in Virtual Teams: How to Develop and Maintain Trust in Global Virtual Teams

Abstract

This thesis explores the challenges and opportunities of global virtual teams and the development of trust in global virtual teams. By their nature, global virtual teams are affected by distance (geographic, temporal, and perceived), configuration, and team diversity, all of which account for the many challenges that global virtual teams face. Typical challenges include challenges in establishing trust, maintaining awareness, and maintaining motivation, among many others. Similarly, by their nature, global virtual teams offer time and cost saving and recognize the potential benefits of team diversity.

This thesis recognizes trust as a multidimensional construct with cognitive and affective components, and explores the development of trust through swift trust, cognitive trust, and affective trust in the various stages of a global virtual team’s life cycle. In the early stages of global virtual team’s life cycle, team members rely on external cues to develop swift trust and cognitive trust. In the later stages of a global virtual team’s life cycle, team members rely more on acts of good faith to develop and maintain cognitive and affective trust.

This thesis contributes to the existing literature on trust in global virtual teams by providing a comprehensive overview of the challenges and opportunities of global virtual teams and trust development in global virtual teams, and can serve as a guide for managers of virtual teams and global virtual teams to navigate the realm of virtual teamwork.