Marketing & consumer behavior
Trust scale: online shopping, brand, KOL
- Concept
- Trust
- Field
- Marketing & consumer behavior
- Scales in the library
- 3
- Items
- 16
Trust is the willingness to rely on another party because you believe they are honest, competent and care about your interests. In e-commerce, Gefen et al. (2003) integrated trust into the TAM model; in marketing, brand trust leads to loyalty according to Chaudhuri and Holbrook (2001); in influencer research, trustworthiness is part of source credibility. Common topics in Vietnam: trust when buying on e-commerce platforms, trust in e-wallets, trust in KOLs and purchase intention.
Comparing the scales
| Scale | Author (year) | Items | Response format | When to use it |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trust (TR) Trust in online vendor scale | Gefen, Karahanna & Straub (2003) | 7 | Likert 7-point | Choose when the target is an online seller or store and respondents have bought there before. |
| Brand Trust (BT) Brand trust, affect & loyalty | Chaudhuri & Holbrook (2001) | 4 | Likert 7-point | Choose when the target is a brand and the model leads to loyalty. |
| Trustworthiness (TRU) Source credibility scale | Ohanian (1990) | 5 | 7-point | Choose when measuring how trustworthy a celebrity, KOL or product reviewer is. |
Items of each scale
Original English wording from the published source. Replace placeholders such as [system] or
[brand] with what your study is about, and pilot the questionnaire with 20 to 30 respondents first.
Trust (TR) · Trust in online vendor scale
| Code | Item |
|---|---|
| TR1 | Based on my experience with [the online vendor] in the past, I know it is honest |
| TR2 | Based on my experience with [the online vendor] in the past, I know it cares about customers |
| TR3 | Based on my experience with [the online vendor] in the past, I know it is not opportunistic |
| TR4 | Based on my experience with [the online vendor] in the past, I know it provides good service |
| TR5 | Based on my experience with [the online vendor] in the past, I know it is predictable |
| TR6 | Based on my experience with [the online vendor] in the past, I know it is trustworthy |
| TR7 | Based on my experience with [the online vendor] in the past, I know it knows its market |
Source: Gefen, Karahanna & Straub (2003). Response scale, licence and APA reference: Trust in online vendor scale.
Brand Trust (BT) · Brand trust, affect & loyalty
| Code | Item |
|---|---|
| BT1 | I trust this brand. |
| BT2 | I rely on this brand. |
| BT3 | This is an honest brand. |
| BT4 | This brand is safe. |
Source: Chaudhuri & Holbrook (2001). Response scale, licence and APA reference: Brand trust, affect & loyalty.
Trustworthiness (TRU) · Source credibility scale
| Code | Item |
|---|---|
| TRU1 | Not dependable – Dependable |
| TRU2 | Dishonest – Honest |
| TRU3 | Unreliable – Reliable |
| TRU4 | Insincere – Sincere |
| TRU5 | Untrustworthy – Trustworthy |
Source: Ohanian (1990). Response scale, licence and APA reference: Source credibility scale.
Tips
- The Gefen et al. scale starts each item with 'Based on my past experience'. For people who have not bought, drop this phrase or survey only those who have.
- Ohanian's trustworthiness scale uses 7-point semantic differential adjective pairs. Show respondents the name or photo of the specific endorser before the questions.
- The brand trust scale has only 4 short items, suitable for models with many constructs.
- Trust can have several components (competence, benevolence, integrity). If your topic needs to separate them, you need a different multidimensional scale.
Once you have a scale, put the concept in the research model drawer to state your hypotheses, work out the minimum sample size, and after data collection check reliability with the Cronbach's alpha calculator.
Frequently asked questions
Are trust and perceived risk two sides of one concept?
No. Trust is a positive expectation of the other party, while perceived risk is the possibility of a bad outcome. Many e-commerce models measure both and have trust reduce perceived risk.
Should I measure trust in the platform or in the seller?
It depends on your research question. On an e-commerce platform, trust in the platform (Shopee, Lazada) and trust in the seller are different targets. State the target in the item wording.
Does trust affect purchase intention directly?
Most studies find it does, and trust often mediates between factors such as reputation or website quality and purchase intention.