There might be some feedback between trust and further development of trust. I cooperate with you, discover your trustworthiness, and therefore cooperate even more or on even more important matters with you. If I trust most of the people with whom I interact, I might also begin to take the risk of cooperating with almost anyone I meet, at least if they are likely to remain in my ambit. Hence my general optimism about others is a benefit to those others when they might wish to cooperate with me (or even to abuse my optimistic expectations). Again, however, it is the high level of trustworthiness of people in my network that generates this benefit.

XREF: Connects to network theory and the logic of social capital/reputation, echoing recent book club readings on how trust scales within bounded communities.

Russell Hardin, Trust and Trustworthiness, loc. 410