Economists generally assume that the narrow pursuit of interest results in efficient economic exchange. The aim of this paper has been to dispute this assumption. … The theoretical section addressed two issues: to determine the conditions under which the need for trust develops in relations of economic exchange … Trust is crucial when contracting parties invest in specific assets, locking

XREF: Connects to trust economics literature, Williamson's transaction cost economics, and relational contract theory.

Diego Gambetta, Trust - Making and Breaking…, loc. 2626