People have historically used personal introductions to build social capital, which is the foundation of career networking and is perhaps the most effective way to advance a career (Lin, 2001). With societal changes, such as the pandemic (Venkatesh & Edirappuli, 2020), and the increasing capabilities of Artificial Intelligence (AI), new approaches may emerge that impact societal relationships. Social capital theory highlights the need for reciprocal agreements to establish the trust between parties (Gouldner, 1960). My theoretical prediction and focus of this research include two principles: The impact of reciprocity in evaluating trust of the source of the introduction and the acceptability of AI in interpersonal relationships. I test this relationship through the creation of plausible vignettes that the participants may have encountered in business. The results show that a higher trust of AI and could replace one side of the relationship, thus reducing the dependency on or eliminating reciprocal behavior.
","abstract_html":"<p>People have historically used personal introductions to build social capital, which is the foundation of career networking and is perhaps the most effective way to advance a career (Lin, 2001). With societal changes, such as the pandemic (Venkatesh & Edirappuli, 2020), and the increasing capabilities of Artificial Intelligence (AI), new approaches may emerge that impact societal relationships. Social capital theory highlights the need for reciprocal agreements to establish the trust between parties (Gouldner, 1960). My theoretical prediction and focus of this research include two principles: The impact of reciprocity in evaluating trust of the source of the introduction and the acceptability of AI in interpersonal relationships. I test this relationship through the creation of plausible vignettes that the participants may have encountered in business. The results show that a higher trust of AI and could replace one side of the relationship, thus reducing the dependency on or eliminating reciprocal behavior.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Tripp, Peter"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Ph.D.","degree_level":"Dissertation","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Daniel Baack","Lisa Victoravich","Dennis Wittmer"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2022,"date_issued":"2022-01-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2022-01-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:03:26Z","subjects":["AI","Artificial intelligence","Reciprocity","Social capital","Trust","Artificial Intelligence and Robotics","Business","Other Business"],"languages":["en"],"rights":["Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/2089","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Daniel Baack","Lisa Victoravich","Dennis Wittmer"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Tripp, Peter"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2022-08-30T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Ph.D."]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["AI","Artificial intelligence","Reciprocity","Social capital","Trust","Artificial Intelligence and Robotics","Business","Other Business"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["en"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
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"]},{"key":"dc:format","label":"Dc Format","values":["application/pdf"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Could Alexa Increase Your Social Worth?"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Daniel Baack","Lisa Victoravich","Dennis Wittmer"],"dc:creator":["Tripp, Peter"],"dc:date.available":["2022-08-30T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["People have historically used personal introductions to build social capital, which is the foundation of career networking and is perhaps the most effective way to advance a career (Lin, 2001). With societal changes, such as the pandemic (Venkatesh & Edirappuli, 2020), and the increasing capabilities of Artificial Intelligence (AI), new approaches may emerge that impact societal relationships. Social capital theory highlights the need for reciprocal agreements to establish the trust between parties (Gouldner, 1960). My theoretical prediction and focus of this research include two principles: The impact of reciprocity in evaluating trust of the source of the introduction and the acceptability of AI in interpersonal relationships. I test this relationship through the creation of plausible vignettes that the participants may have encountered in business. The results show that a higher trust of AI and could replace one side of the relationship, thus reducing the dependency on or eliminating reciprocal behavior.
"],"dc:format":["application/pdf"],"dc:identifier":["https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/2089"],"dc:language":["en"],"dc:rights":["Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
"],"dc:subject":["AI","Artificial intelligence","Reciprocity","Social capital","Trust","Artificial Intelligence and Robotics","Business","Other Business"],"dc:title":["Could Alexa Increase Your Social Worth?"],"thesis:degree_level":["Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_name":["Ph.D."]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T02:03:26Z"}