Trust and distrust in public governance settings: Conceptualising and testing the link in regulatory relations

Koen Verhoest*, Dominika Latusek, Frédérique Six, Libby Maman, Yannis Papadopoulos, Rahel M. Schomaker, Jarle Trondal

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to JournalArticleAcademicpeer-review

Abstract

The relationship between trust and distrust in public governance is still an open question. In the literature, three different perspectives on how trust and distrust are related are intensively debated: (1) trust and distrust as two ends of the same conceptual continuum; (2) trust and distrust as opposites, but with neutral ground in between; and (3) trust and distrust as related, yet distinct concepts. Employing a new measure for distrust and by using perceptual data on trust and distrust in regulatory agencies from multiple types of stakeholders in nine countries and three sectors, this article shows that high trust and high distrust can co-exist at the same time, and that trust and distrust are negatively correlated only to a limited extent. Moreover, while trustworthiness correlates strongly with trust, trustworthiness does not or only weakly correlate with distrust in a negative way. These findings are robust even when controlling for respondents' characteristics, different types of stakeholders, sectors and countries. This suggests that in public governance settings trust and distrust should be considered as distinct concepts, and the article calls for more research into the distinctiveness of the measurement, causes and effects of distrust, compared to trust.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)127-156
Number of pages30
JournalJournal of Trust Research
Volume14
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2024

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group.

Keywords

  • distrust
  • public governance
  • regulatory agency
  • regulatory regimes
  • Trust
  • watchfulness

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