The Impact of Self Consistency and Congruence on Interpersonal Trust among College Students

To explore the status of self consistency and congruence and interpersonal trust, and analyze the impact of self consistency and congruence on interpersonal trust among undergraduates. Methods Three hundred and sixty-nine undergraduates were selected randomly from Guangdong Province, China. They were investigated with Self Consistency and Congruence Scale (SCCS), and Interpersonal Trust Scale (ITS). Results First, the total average scores of SCCS and ITS in this group were (3.14±0.29) and (2.34±0.20), respectively. Second, the results of multiple linear stepwise regression analysis showed that the total average score of ITS, trust in social phenomenon, and trust in others are positively predicted by self flexibility (β=0.139, 0.395, 0.235, all P<0.01), negatively predicted by self rigidity (β=-0.102, -0.221, -0.104, all P<0.01); and the total average score of ITS and trust in social phenomenon are also negatively predicted by the disharmony between self and experience (β=-.0.268, -.0.324, all P<0.01)  Conclusion: The interpersonal trust of undergraduates is at a moderate to low level, and the self consistency and congruence may be one of the important influencing factors of their interpersonal trust.