Measuring Trust among Frontline Health Workers in Rural Ethiopia

Bibliographic Data

ID19005428
AuthorsMichelle M Dynes (Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing, Emory University), Michelle Dynes (0000-0001-5040-6867, Emory University, corresponding author), Craig Hadley (0000-0001-8120-6665, Emory and Henry College), Rob Stephenson (0000-0002-9239-2640, Department of Global Health, Emory's Hubert), Lynn M Sibley (Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing, Emory University), Lynn Sibley (Emory University)
Year2013
Volume72
Issue3
Pages230-241
Publication date2013-08-14
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueHuman Organization (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0018-7259 • E-ISSN: 1938-3517
PublisherSociety for Applied Anthropology (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.17730/humo.72.3.y2kk32w73442w6q1
OpenAlexW2026269961
LanguageEN
Citations received4
References cited29

Research on trust, and its influence on teamwork, among health workers in low-resource settings has been understudied. We, therefore, undertook a formative study of trust among three diverse cadres of frontline health workers in Amhara region, Ethiopia. We aimed to develop a comprehensive description of trust in this setting and generate a tool to measure levels of trust within and between cadres. In-depth interviews with 30 frontline workers uncovered a core set of items that seem to define trust in this setting (character/ability/communication), including novel conceptualizations (oneness). Twenty-five items developed from formative data were pilot tested with 92 health workers. The final 10-item scale exhibited strong internal consistency across cadres (alpha>0.83). In support of criterion validity, the scale was positively associated with the sense-of-team scale (p<0.001) and accounted for greater variance in health workers' sense-of-team (Adj.R2 =0.67) than did a composite of single trust items (Adj.R2=0.28). For contrasting group validity, respondents had greater within-group agreement compared to between-group agreement on trust items and displayed higher competence in answering questions about their own cadre. Results demonstrate that the Rural Health Worker Trust Scale can be validly and reliably used to measure trust among diverse cadres. The scale may be used to develop and evaluate trust-building interventions that aim to encourage and sustain collaboration among heterogeneous frontline workers

Community health workers · Economic growth · Economics · Environmental health · Health services · Population · Socioeconomics · Sociology · Global Maternal and Child Health · Healthcare Systems and Reforms · Medicine · Psychology · Vaccine Coverage and Hesitancy

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