Trust Transference on Social Exchanges Among Triads of Agents Based on Dependence Relations and Reputation

This paper proposes the addition of a third agent to the model proposed by Piaget to Social Exchanges. This agent, called an Intermediary Agent, may outsource a service in favor of another agent. This situation can be used to develop a social exchange model for triads of agents in order to evaluate the process of trust transfer between agents who are not familiar with each other, i.e., they have never interacted directly, just by the intermediary agent. The trust transfer analysis is based on exchange value, reputation and dependence relationship concepts, all of which are analyzed interdependently. This way, it complements the Piaget model, generating a contribution to the study of non-economic aspects of the exchange process. The generated information can be used to guide agents' decisions about partner choice in future exchanges. Additionally, it provides a starting point to understanding the agents' behavior in interactions among more than three agents.