This paper conceptualised a model of customer trust in buyer–seller relationships in rural India by integrating variables studied in developed counties with the emphasis of social aspects of market exchange by including generalised trust sources. We have applied Fishbein's model of behavioural intention and Fafchamps's (2002) trust theory in developing countries and proposed that the customer trust is not only based on often-studied personalised trust sources only but also through generalised trust sources. In the model, we have included normative and informational social influences as generalised trust sources and product quality, service quality and customer dependence as personalised trust sources. We empirically validated our model with the survey data collected from farmers who buy chemical fertilisers from rural traders in India. We found that the generalised trust sources significantly impact customer trust for traders. Furthermore, we also found that the personalised trust sources impact customer trust for traders in a different way in rural India.
AndersonE.W.FornellC.LehmannD.R.Customer satisfaction, market share and profitabilityJournal of Marketing583199453–66
8.
ArrowK.Gifts and exchangesPhilosophy and Public Affairs141972343–362
9.
BagozziR.P.LeeK.H.Multiple routes for social influence: The role of compliance, internalization, and social identitySocial Psychology Quarterly652002226–247
10.
BagozziR.P.WongN.AbeS.BergamiM.Cultural and situational contingencies and the theory of reasoned action: Application to fast-food and restaurant consumptionJournal of Consumer Psychology92200097–106
11.
BagozziR.P.Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error: A commentJournal of Marketing Research18August1981375–381
12.
BattP.J.Modeling buyer–seller relationships in agribusiness in South East Asia, paper no: 17Proceedings of 16th Annual IMP Conference, 7–9 September2000University of Bath–University of BirminghamBath
13.
BattP.J.RexhaN.Building trust in agribusiness supply chains: A conceptual model of buyer–seller relationships in the seed potato industry in AsiaJournal of International Food and Agribusiness Marketing11119991–17
14.
BeardenW.O.EtzelM.J.Reference group influence on product and brand purchase decisionsJournal of Consumer Research9September1982183–194
15.
BeardenW.O.NetemeyerR.G.TeelJ.E.Measurement of consumer susceptibility to interpersonal influenceJournal of Consumer Research15March1989473–481
16.
BitnerM.J.BoomsB.H.MohrL.A.Critical service encounters: The employee's viewpointJournal of Marketing58199495–106
17.
BrislinR.W.Translation and content analysis of oral and written materialsTriandisHarry C.BerryJohn W.Hand Book of Cross-Cultural Psychologyvol. 21980Allyn & Bacon, Inc.Boston389–444
18.
BurnkrantR.E.CousineauA.Informational and normative social influence in buyer behaviorJournal of Consumer Research231975206–215
19.
CasellaA., 1999. Informational barriers to trade: The role of networks. In: Proceedings of Annual Bank Conference on Development Economics, World Bank, 29–30 April, Washington, D.C.
20.
ChurchillG.A.Jr.SurprenantC.An investigation into the determinants of customer satisfactionJournal of Marketing Research19November1982491–504
21.
ClarkR.A.GoldsmithR.E.Interpersonal influence and consumer innovativenessInternational Journal of Consumer Studies30200634–43
22.
CroninJ.J.TaylorS.A.Measuring service quality: A re-examination and extensionJournal of Marketing563199255–68
23.
CunninghamW.H.GreenR.T.From the editorJournal of Marketing48Winter1984910
24.
De RuyterK.MoormanL.LemminkJ.Antecedents of commitment and trust in customer–supplier relationships in high technology marketsIndustrial Marketing Management302001271–286
25.
De-WulfK.Odekerken-SchroderG.Assessing the impact of a retailer's relationship efforts on consumers’ attitudes and behaviorJournal of Retailing and Consumer Services10200395–108
26.
DeutschM.GerardH.B.A study of normative and informational influence upon individual judgementJournal of Abnormal and Social Psychology51November1955629–636
27.
DoneyP.M.CannonJ.P.An examination of the nature of trust in buyer–seller relationshipsJournal of Marketing61April199735–51
28.
DubeyS.Social structure and change in Indian peasant communitiesDesaiA.Rural Sociology in India1969Popular PrakashanBombay
29.
DwivediM., VarmanR., 2003. Nature of trust in small firm clusters: A case study of Kanpur saddlery cluster. In: Proceedings of Conference on Clusters, Industrial Districts and Firms: The Challenge of Globalization, 12–13 September, Modena, Italy.
FafchampsM., 2002. Social capital and development. Social Development Strategy, The World Bank.
32.
FafchampsM.MintenB.Relationships and traders in MadagascarThe Journal of Development Studies35619991–35
33.
FerreiraG., 1997. An Evolutionary Approach to Farming Decision Making on Extensive Rangelands, A Dissertation, University of Edinburgh, Scotland.
34.
FishbeinM.AjzenI.Belief, Attitude, Intention, and Behaviour: An Introduction to Theory and Research1975Addison-WesleyReading, MA
35.
FornellC.JohnsonM.D.AndersonE.W.ChaJ.BryantB.E.The American customer satisfaction index: Nature, purpose, and findingsJournal of Marketing60419967–18
36.
FrazierG.L.GillJ.D.KaleS.H.Dealer dependence levels and reciprocal actions in a channel of distribution in a developing countryJournal of Marketing53January198950–69
37.
FukuyamaF.Trust: The Social Virtues and the Creation of Prosperity1995The Free PressNew York
38.
GanesanS.Determinants of long-term orientation in buyer–seller relationshipsJournal of Marketing58April19941–19
39.
GellnerE., 2000. Trust, cohesion, and the social order. In: GambettaDiego (Ed.), Trust: Making and Breaking Cooperative Relations, electronic ed. Department of Sociology, University of Oxford (Chapter 9), pp. 142–157.
40.
GraysonM.JohnsonD.ChenD.F.Is firm trust essential in a trusted environment? How trust in the business context influences customersJournal of Marketing Research45April2007241–256
41.
HarrissJ., 2002. On trust, and trust in Indian business: Ethnographic explorations. Working Paper Series, No. 02–35, Development Studies Institute, London School of Economics and Political Science, London, UK.
42.
HeideJ.B.JohnG.The role of dependence balancing in safe-guarding transaction-specific assets in conventional channelsJournal of Marketing52January198820–35
43.
HoffmannS.MüllerS.Consumer boycotts due to factory relocationJournal of Business Research622009239–247
44.
HoldenR.K., 1990. An Exploratory Study of Trust in Buyer–Seller Relationships. A Dissertation, University Microfilms International, Ann Arbor, MI.
45.
IacobucciD.OstromA.GraysonK.“Distinguishing service quality and customer satisfaction: The voice of the customerJournal of Consumer Psychology431995277–303
46.
JohnsJ.L.A concept analysis of trustJournal of Advanced Nursing241199676–83
47.
JohnsonM.D.NaderG.FornellC.Expectations, perceived performance, and customer satisfaction for a complex service: The case of bank loanJournal of Economic Psychology171996163–182
48.
KaoA.C., 1998. Trust and Agency: The Patient–Physician Relationship in the Era of Managed Care. A Dissertation, University Microfilms International, Ann Arbor, MI.
49.
KelmanH.C.Processes of opinion changePublic Opinion Quarterly25196157–78
50.
KennedyM.S.FerrelL.K.LeClairD.T.Consumers’ trust of salesperson and manufacturer: An empirical studyJournal of Business Research511200173–86
51.
KrapfelR.E.SalmondD.SpekmanR.A strategic approach to managing buyer–seller relationshipsEuropean Journal of Marketing259199122–37
52.
LaingA.W.CottonS.Purchasing health care services: Information sources and decisional criteriaJournal of Marketing Management121996719–734
53.
LeeC.GreenR.T.Cross cultural examination of the Fishbein behavioral intentions modelJournal of International Business Studies28Second Quarter199189–305
54.
LeeJ.A.KacenJ.J.Cultural influences on consumer satisfaction with impulse and planned purchase decisionsJournal of Business Research612008265–272
55.
LeeJ.A.Adapting Triandis's model of subjective culture and social behavior relationships to consumer behaviorJournal of Consumer Psychology922000117–126
56.
LeeD.Y.DawesP.L.Guanxi, trust, and long-term orientation in Chinese business marketsJournal of International Marketing132200528–56
57.
LeungT.K.P.LaiK.RickyY.K.C.WongY.H.The roles of Xinyong and Guanxi in Chinese relationship marketingEuropean Journal of Marketing395/62005528–559
58.
LyonF.Trust, networks and norms: The creation of social capital in agricultural economies in GhanaWorld Development2842000663–681
59.
MaltzE.KohliA.K.Market intelligence dissemination across functional boundariesJournal of Marketing Research33February199647–61
60.
MartinB.WentzelD.TomczakT.Effects of susceptibility to normative influence and type of testimonial on attitudes toward print advertisingJournal of Advertising371200829–43
61.
McGorryS.Y.Measurement in a cross-cultural environment: Survey translation issuesQualitative Market Research: An International Journal32200074–81
62.
MiniardP.W.CohenJ.B.Isolating attitudinal and normative influences in behavioral intention modelsJournal of Marketing Research161979102–110
63.
MooreM.How difficult is it to construct market relations? A commentary on plateauJournal of Development Studies3041994818–830
64.
MorganR.M.HuntS.D.The commitment-trust theory of relationship marketingJournal of Marketing583199420–38
65.
ParasuramanA.ZeithamlV.A.BerryL.L.A conceptual model of service quality and its implications for future researchJournal of Marketing494198541–50
66.
ParasuramanA.ZeithamlV.BerryL.L.SERVQUAL: A multiple item scale for measuring consumer perceptions of service qualityJournal of Retailing641198812–37
67.
ParkC.LessigP.V.Students and housewives: Difference in susceptibility to reference group influenceJournal of Consumer Research4September1977102–110
68.
PincusS.WatersL.K.Informational social influence and product quality judgementsJournal of Applied Psychology5621977615–619
69.
RotterJ.B.A new scale for the measurement of interpersonal trustJournal of Personality3541967651–665
70.
SelnesF.Antecedents and consequences of trust and satisfaction in buyer–seller relationshipsEuropean Journal of Marketing323/41998305–322
71.
SivadasE.Baker-PrewittJ.L.An examination of the relationship between service quality, customer satisfaction and store loyaltyInternational Journal of Retail and Distribution Management282200073–82
72.
SolanoC.LeonH.PerezE.HerreroM.The role of personal information sources on the decision-making process of Costa Rican dairy farmersAgricultural Systems7620033–18
73.
SolomonM.R.Consumer Behaviourseventh ed.2006Prentice Hall
74.
SwanJ.E.BowersM.R.RichardsonL.D.Customer trust in the salesperson: An integrative review and meta-analysis of the empirical literatureJournal of Business Research44February199993–107
75.
TurnerJ.C.Social Influence1991Brooks/ColePacific Grove, CA
76.
WangenheimF.v.BayonT.The effect of word of mouth on services switching: Measurement and moderating variablesEuropean Journal of Marketing389/1020041173–1185
