Development of interorganizational trust in virtual organizations An integrative framework Debmalya Mukherjee College of Business Administration, The University of Akron, Akron, Ohio, USA Robert W. Renn Fogelman College of Business and Economics, The University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, USA Ben L. Kedia Robert Wang Center for International Business Education and Research, The University of Memphis, Memphis, Tennessee, USA, and Deepraj Mukherjee Department of Business, Waldorf College, Forest City, Iowa, USA Abstract Purpose – A virtual organization (VO) is a set of geographically dispersed and functionally diverse organizational entities interconnected by electronic forms of communication that cooperate with one another for a common valued outcome. The objective of this article is to propose a research framework that illustrates the development of trust between VOs. Design/methodology/approach – This paper provides an overview of literature on VOs, identifies antecedents of trustworthiness in virtual environment, explores the role of boundary spanners’ interpersonal trust, and relates them to inter-VO trust formation. A research analysis is developed that depicts the proposed relationships. Findings – The propositions shed light on the overall interorganizational trust building process in VOs. In doing so, the framework also acknowledges the role of individual boundary spanners of a trustor organization in the trust development process. Originality/value – Systematic scholarly research relating to VOs has been somewhat limited. With the emergence of VOs as important organizational forms, there is an increasing need to comprehend how interorganizational trust is developed and maintained in VOs. This study attempts to fill this gap in the extant literature by exploring how social exchange factors in a virtual context relate to factors of organizational trustworthiness of the trustee organization. In addition, this paper also investigates the key role played by the boundary spanners of both organizations in the trust formation process. Keywords Virtual organizations, Interorganizational trust, Interpersonal trust, Social exchange theory, Trustworthiness, Trust, Boundary spanner Paper type Conceptual paper The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at www.emeraldinsight.com/0955-534X.htm An earlier version of this manuscript was presented at the Southern Management Association (SMA), 2005 annual meeting, Charleston, USA. The authors would like to thank Editor Dr Goran Svensson, the anonymous reviewers, and Dr Somnath Lahiri, and Amrapali Gupta for their immensely insightful comments and guidance. Trust in virtual organizations 255 European Business Review Vol. 24 No. 3, 2012 pp. 255-271 q Emerald Group Publishing Limited 0955-534X DOI 10.1108/09555341211222503