Friday, January 30, 2009

T R U S T

Definitions of Trust

“Trust … is reliance on another's good will … Where one depends on another's good will, one is necessarily vulnerable to the limits of that good will. One leaves others an opportunity to harm one when one trusts, and also shows one's confidence that they will not take it. Reasonable trust will require good grounds for such confidence in another's good will, or at least the absence of good grounds for expecting their ill will or indifference. Trust then … is accepted vulnerability to another's possible but not expected ill will (or lack of good will) toward one.”


“Trust … is letting other persons (natural or artificial, such as firms, nations, etc.) take care of something the trustor cares about, where such 'caring for' involves some exercise of discretionary powers.”


(Harvey S. James, Jr., Ph. D)