Both instincts and earlier studies indicate that a person’s trustworthiness is often judged based on their history of behavior and their track record with betrayals. Psychologists conducted a range of experiments revealing that people viewed individuals who had betrayed others as generally less trustworthy. However, in circumstances where the betrayal was advantageous to the observer, or had no negative impact on them, the betrayer was considered trustworthy. This trend appeared to be consistent in various relationship types, including friendships, romantic partnerships, and professional connections.
Picture this situation: Two individuals who cheat on their partners with one another decide to leave their partners and be together. Should they have trust in each other, or is the saying “once a cheater, always a cheater” true?
Intuition paired with past research suggests that a person’s trustworthiness is influenced by their previous actions and their reputation concerning betrayals. Recent research from psychologists at UCLA and Oklahoma State University seeks to clarify why some individuals might still trust certain betrayers, including cheaters.
According to their findings published in Evolution and Human Behavior, when we gain something from someone’s betrayal, we tend to still view that person as fundamentally trustworthy. Although subjects in the study often viewed people with a history of betrayal as less trustworthy overall, those who benefited from a betrayer’s actions regarded that person as worthy of trust.
This raises questions about the significance of trustworthiness in our relationships. The research team suggests that our evaluations of someone’s trustworthiness are essential for making beneficial decisions. Even if we are aware of a person’s previous betrayals, the researchers proposed that we remain alert to specific relationship dynamics that affect our trust in that individual.
Study co-author and UCLA psychology professor Jaimie Krems stated, “Relying solely on someone’s history of betrayal to decide whether I can trust them may not be the wisest approach.” She added, “Certainly, if someone has betrayed others, that could indicate they might betray me too — but that’s not always the case. For instance, consider a friend who spills other friends’ secrets but keeps yours confidential. This friend is betraying others while actually enhancing your experience with valuable information.”
The researchers asserted that while it’s essential to recognize someone’s reputation for betrayal, it’s equally important to consider how their betrayals may affect you personally.
The researchers executed a series of experiments to determine if people perceive individuals as more trustworthy when they choose not to betray or when the impact of the betrayal varies.
In these experiments, participants were instructed to read one of three scenarios involving a target. The first scenario focused on secret-sharing among friends, the second dealt with romantic infidelity, and the third was centered on international relations, where participants acted like CIA agents trying to win the trust of a French official.
In these scenarios, the targets demonstrated one of three behaviors: they either refrained from betraying anyone when they could have; they betrayed someone else for the benefit of the participant; or they betrayed the participant to a third party. For example, some targets chose not to disclose a secret, others shared someone else’s secret with the participant, while some revealed the participant’s secret to someone else. After reading the scenarios, participants rated the target’s trustworthiness on a scale of 1 to 7, using questions like, “I would trust the target to keep my secrets.”
As might be expected, across all relationship types, participants viewed targets as more trustworthy when they did not betray anyone and less trustworthy when they did. However, not all betrayals were perceived equally negatively. When the betrayal provided a benefit to the participants, they still considered the target trustworthy. This pattern was apparent in friendships, romantic connections, and professional settings alike.
The results supported the researchers’ hypothesis that perceptions of trustworthiness are influenced both by an individual’s character and by unique factors relating to the particular situation and the individuals involved.
The study revealed that while individuals may initially have high ideals regarding trust, their actual judgments often lean more toward self-interest.
The research received funding from the National Science Foundation.
Key takeaways
- Instincts and past research suggest a person’s trustworthiness is influenced by their history and reputation concerning betrayal.
- Experiments indicated that while subjects viewed those with prior betrayals as less trustworthy, they considered betrayals trustworthy if they were beneficial or had no effect on them.
- This pattern was consistent across various relationship types: friendships, romantic relationships, and professional connections.
