Catch me if you can. Introducing a new trust in management scale from positive labor relations

This study investigates on the conceptual and psychometric foundations of trust in management scales. A "sentence mapping" is advanced through five research questions which are central to select an intra-organizational trust scale. This mapping focuses on the subject (trustor), the verb (dimensionality), the verb tense (conceptualization form), the direct subject (trustee or a referent) and the general wording of each item. It revealed absence of agreement on a specific trust in management scale. We therefore turn towards best workplaces empirical field, organizations generating a "strong culture of trust" evaluated from Trust Index® questionnaire. First, we conduct exploratory factor analyses. Then, we control for endogeneity issues inherent to best workplaces: self-selection and halo effect biases. First, we extend our sample to organizations that did not make the list, but also to organizations that did not willingly participate to best workplaces lists. Second, we conduct non-parametrical tests to extract the first factor which appeared less affected by endogeneity biases, but also appeared capturing two-third of total variance. Based on a sentence mapping in regards of trust instruments literature, we deduct a trust in management scale that appears to be psychometrically validated, matching our social exchange theoretical conceptualization but mostly is clearly applicable to the chosen referent and context. This study opens new horizons on the central role of employees-management relations.