Trust Design Framework in Blockchain-Enabled Supply Chains
摘要
Blockchain is a distributed ledger technology widely discussed as an infrastructure with the potential to significantly increase transparency, efficiency, and, especially, trust between various partners in supply chain operations. However, how trust is achieved through blockchain technology in an ecosystem with heterogeneous parties and interests is currently under-researched. This paper uses an affordances lens to investigate perceived affordances of blockchain technology, which increase trust in supply chain operations, i.e., the potential for actions that stem from the relation of technical functionalities and supply chain parties’ perception thereof, eventually leading to trust. Trust-related affordances are extracted and condensed through a systematic literature review and clustered using a three-layered affordance framework. The framework allows the description of distinct technical, design, and business affordances that gradually build upon each other and open up idiosyncratic business opportunities along a supply chain. The framework guides practitioners and scholars to systematically identify and foster the perception of trust-related affordances in supply chain operations.