The consolidation of trust therefore constitutes an advantageous, but also a heavily presuppositional reformulation for the primordial problem of social order, the existence of a free alter ego. Instead of arming oneself against the unpredictability of the other person in the full complexity of all possibilities, one can seek to reduce complexity by concentrating on the creation and maintenance of mutual trust, and engage in more meaningful action in respect of a problem now more narrowly defined.

XREF: Connects to sociological theory of trust (Luhmann's systems theory) and to negotiation/partnership risk-reduction strategies.

Niklas Luhmann, Trust and Power, loc. 247