Trust as dependence: a logical approach

We propose that the trust an agent places in another agent declaratively captures an architectural connector between the two agents. We formulate trust as a generic modality expressing a relationship between a truster and a trustee. Specifically, trust here is definitionally independent of, albeit constrained by, other relevant modalities such as commitments and beliefs. Trust applies to a variety of attributes of the relationship between truster and trustee. For example, an agent may trust someone to possess an important capability, exercise good judgment, or to intend to help it. Although such varieties of trust are hugely different, they respect common logical patterns. We present a logic of trust that expresses such patterns as reasoning postulates concerning the static representation of trust, its dynamics, and its relationships with teamwork and other agent interactions. In this manner, the proposed logic illustrates the general properties of trust that reflect natural intui...

• Type: Journal
• Year: 2011
• Where: ATAL
• Authors: Munindar P. Singh
• Keywords: ATAL 2011, Intelligent Agents, Logical Patterns, Service Oriented Computing, Static Representation