Book · Free download
Trust Transfer
A Unified Theory of How Trust Moves Through Networks, Brands, and Institutions
Viveka Mohan Das · Mindful Machines Press
We rely every day on people, products and systems we cannot check for ourselves. Trust Transfer shows how that confidence moves: from a known Source, across a perceived Bridge such as a referral, badge, ranking or certification, to a less-known Target. It shows what those signals actually establish, who stands behind them, and where their assurance ends.
Download the PDF 5.8 MB · 192 pages Download the EPUB 6.7 MB · ebook
Free to download. Copyright 2026 Viveka Mohan Das. All rights reserved.
About the book
We trust what we don't know. No one can audit every balance sheet, inspect every supply chain, or test every system, so we lean on signals from elsewhere: a referral, a brand, a platform, a regulator.
Trust Transfer offers a framework for how that borrowed confidence moves: from a known Source, across a perceived Bridge, to a less-known Target, read at every step by the person deciding whether to rely on it. Drawing on research and documented cases across referrals, brands and influencers, platforms and search, machines, verifiers and institutions, the book separates confidence that is borrowed from trust earned through a Target's own record. It also makes room for judgements that are honestly unresolved.
It explains how mistrust spreads when a link fails, sets out a Contain–Repair–Monitor model for responding, and gives practical checks for anyone designing a trust signal or deciding whether to rely on one, including a one-page decision sheet for organisations.
The framework is offered as a synthesis and a diagnostic aid, not a tested theory. Trust Transfer is not a reason to reject every shortcut. It is a way to see what the shortcut carries before you ask it to carry you.
Book details
- Author
- Viveka Mohan Das (ORCID 0009-0007-9715-0951)
- Publisher
- Mindful Machines Press, Australia
- Edition
- First edition, 2026
- Ebook ISBN
- 978-1-7649186-1-9
- Formats
- PDF (192 pages, 5.8 MB) and EPUB 3 (6.7 MB)
- Language
- English (Australia)
- Earlier version
- SSRN, doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.7086358
- Price
- Free
How to cite it
Mohan Das, Viveka (2026). Trust Transfer: A Unified Theory of How Trust Moves Through Networks, Brands, and Institutions. Mindful Machines Press. ISBN 978-1-7649186-1-9.
Free to download. Copyright 2026 Viveka Mohan Das. All rights reserved.