Political and Social Trust

Petty corruption reduces political trust

Trust in the political system and institutions is critical for a healthy democracy. When trust is low, people become less willing to follow the laws that help organize our societies. However, trust can be hard to develop. A recent study looked at whether there are ways to talk about corruption without reducing trust in political institutions in the context of Peru, a country with low levels of political trust. They found that while people were unmoved when presented with information about big corruption between governments and business, any presentation of petty corruption information reduced their political trust, regardless of whether it was framed as good, bad, or even without a framing. Furthermore, information about corruption did not prompt people to donate to a reputable anti-corruption organization. These results indicate the difficulty of developing trust between citizens and the government while talking about social problems.

Social trust and political trust can work hand-in-hand

There are two key types of trust in complex societies. The first is social trust in the general cooperativeness of other people, and is linked to happier, healthier, and more tolerant societies. The second is political trust in government and institutions, and is linked to democratic stability and legitimacy. A recent study looked at these two types of trust in Chile, to determine whether improved political trust could encourage social trust, and vice versa. They interviewed 2000 Chileans four times over three years to track how changes in these two types of trust affected each other. They found that for both types of trust, increasing trust spilled over into the other type, with increasing political trust leading people to be more generally trusting of their fellow citizens, and that increasing trust of fellow citizens also increasing political trust. These results suggest that while trust may be hard to develop, once we start increasing trust, it can begin virtuous feedback cycles, creating happier, more tolerant, and more legitimate societies.

Do you have a study we should share for a future Facty Friday? Send an email to drg.el@usaid.gov!”