ABSTRACT

In the tradition of naturalistic taxonomics, this chapter surveys the various factors, dimensions, and varieties of trust that have been proposed, exposes the metaphors and assumptions of the models, and attempts to make sense of the complications and complexities, both philosophical and pragmatic. Each of the first eight short sections of this chapter presents a challenge to the Zeitgeist, posed as rhetorical questions. These culminate in a view of human trust in machines that regards trusting as a process, that emphasizes dynamics over states, and that distinguishes a considerable variety of trusting relationships.