To trust or to control? A question of persuasion

The literature on the trust and control relationship is generally based on two divergent arguments. According to one view, trust and control are inversely related, with more formal control resulting in less trust, and vice... [ view full abstract ]

The literature on the trust and control relationship is generally based on two divergent arguments. According to one view, trust and control are inversely related, with more formal control resulting in less trust, and vice versa (Dekker, 2004). A second stream of research, however, sees trust and control as complementary to each other, arguing that a higher level of control does not automatically necessitate a lowering of trust (van Ark & Edelenbos, 2005).

This study explores the trust and control conundrum in inter-organisational networks in the public sector. Drawing on evidence from an extensive field study of a Local Safeguarding Children Board [LSCB] in the North East of England, we show how formal management control systems [MCS] are implicated in trust-reinforcing persuasion processes (Selin, 2006). Specifically, we provide evidence of how network leaders employ information generated by management accounting and control systems for constructing persuasive messages they deliver to partners using various rhetoric expedients. The main contribution of this paper is to extend the understanding of the relation between trust and control in network settings by focusing on trust-generation processes. Also this study adds to an emerging field of research investigating management control mechanisms in public sector networks (Berretta & Busco, 2011).