Convergence and divergence among trust-related indicators in a large, predominantly young Chinese online sample

Trust is an important psychological and social resource for interpersonal cooperation and societal functioning. However, measures commonly used to assess trust may capture related yet non-interchangeable constructs. Using an exploratory cross-sectional design, this study examined the response patterns, convergence and divergence, and selected demographic and regional correlates of multiple trust-related indicators in a large online sample of predominantly young Chinese adults. Participants were recruited through university networks and the questionnaire Star platform. After quality control, 5155 valid responses were included. The measures comprised a classic single-item generalized trust question, scales assessing general trust attitudes and dispositional trust, a self-reported measure of trust tendencies toward different social targets, and a hypothetical, non-incentivized trust-game scenario assessing investment choices, reciprocity expectations, and stated return decisions. In the classic trust question, 56.55% of participants indicated that most people in society could be trusted. Dispositional trust and general trust attitudes were above their respective scale midpoints with large effect sizes (Cohens d = 0.95 and 1.26), whereas self-reported interpersonal trust tendencies showed a small negative deviation from the corresponding midpoint ( d = −0.17). All three hypothetical trust-game responses were statistically below the 50% response-range midpoint, although the deviations were trivial for investment choices ( d = −0.09), modest for reciprocity expectations ( d = −0.34), and small for stated return decisions ( d = −0.15). General trust attitudes were strongly associated with dispositional trust ( r = 0.853), and self-reported interpersonal trust tendencies were moderately associated with both measures. In contrast, generalized trust belief showed negligible associations with the hypothetical task responses (rs = 0.027–0.061). Regional indicators provided only small increments in explanatory power after selected demographic characteristics were controlled, and their associations varied across outcomes. The findings indicate that trust-related measures show partial convergence while capturing construct- and context-specific dimensions. Conclusions about general interpersonal trust therefore depend on the construct assessed, the target of trust, and the response context. These findings should be interpreted as measurement patterns within a predominantly young Chinese online sample rather than as a population estimate of trust in China.