TOWARDS A POLITICS OF TRUST

This paper draws upon sociological theory to demonstrate that. the man ufacture and deployment of trust is an integral part of the function o f complex systems such as health care. The discussion begins by identi fying the error within the nursing literature which arises from a rath er technical. conceptualization of trust. This tends to limit the dime nsions to trust which is established, and fails to recognize that trus t may be subject to competition and conflict. The paper continues by d rawing upon the work of two theorists, Niklas Luhmann and Susan P., Sh apiro, to demonstrate how trust functions within systems such as healt h care and the mechanisms through which it is controlled. The title of this paper, 'Towards a politics of trust', identifies that this is me rely the first stage in the analysis. Further stages are necessary whi ch analyse the ways in which power is exercised in the conflict for co ntrol within discrete elements of the system.