Toward Industry 5.0: A Conceptual Model for Blockchain’s Impact on Interorganizational Trust in Construction Project Management.

This article focuses on the development of a conceptual model examining how blockchain technology influences interorganizational trust dynamics within the construction industry. It identifies blockchain’s key attributes—immutability, transparency, decentralization, and smart contracts—as foundational to strengthening system-based trust, which subsequently enhances cognition-based and affect-based trust among project stakeholders. The model proposes seven mechanisms through which blockchain fosters commitment, cooperation, communication, conflict reduction, balanced power distribution, and reliable information management, thereby addressing longstanding trust issues and collaboration inefficiencies in construction projects. While blockchain can create trustless environments by automating contract enforcement, the study emphasizes that in complex construction contexts, blockchain primarily reshapes and supports existing trust mechanisms rather than replacing them entirely. The article also highlights the need for empirical validation of the model and suggests future research on blockchain’s impact on interpersonal and intraorganizational trust.