The masses lose trust in institutions, study finds

[Syt]

http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/8f9ea1e2-bba5-11e5-bf7e-8a339b6f2164.html#axzz3xlSQFA7Z

'Informed' global elite places greater faith in institutions than majority

An "informed" global elite now trusts institutions significantly more than the rest of the population does, opening a trust gap that helps explain the rise of populist politicians around the world.
Faith in business, government, media and non-governmental organisations has risen to a five-year high, according to research by Edelman, the public relations consultancy, which polled 33,000 people in 28 countries.

But the improvement in trust is driven almost entirely by growing confidence among the "informed public" — a rump of college-educated, well-read and media-savvy individuals representing 15 per cent of the population.

The gap between this elite's level of trust in institutions and that of the rest is now at its widest since the Edelman Trust Barometer first started measuring overall trust levels in 2012. Other data suggest that people continue to rely more on their peers or on "peer-influenced" sources, such as social media, than on official sources such as business or government.

"The hypothesis is that the 85 per cent have become much more self-referential: they aren't looking outside as much as they are talking to their friends, and thereby reinforcing their own views," said Richard Edelman, chief executive of the PR company.

The trust gulf is also stark between high-income and low-income respondents: 60 per cent of wealthier participants trusted institutions to do "the right thing", against only 46 per cent of people on a lower income.

Mr Edelman said these trust gaps could explain phenomena such as the popularity of Donald Trump, who remains the frontrunner for the Republican presidential nomination in the US, strong support for Marine Le Pen's National Front in France, and protests against everything from increased immigration to Uber, the taxi-hiring company.

A flurry of surveys always heralds the annual World Economic Forum in Davos, which begins this week. In an attempt to shame the rich and powerful that attend, the charity Oxfam will highlight figures showing that the richest 62 people in the world held the same wealth as the poorest half of the global population in 2015, equivalent to some 3.6bn people.

The charity notes that the numbers of the globe's richest individuals needed to balance the bottom half of humanity has steadily decreased, with 388 required as recently as 2010. A key reason last year was the rise in the value of the US dollar since wealth in most other countries, when converted into dollars at market exchange rates, has fallen.

According to Edelman, the public's trust in business has bounced back sharply since 2015, largely because confidence in financial services companies continues to improve as memories of the 2008 crisis fade. This indicates businesses have an opportunity to reduce inequality and improve their image in society, but the public remains cautious about chief executives' ability to lead such a transformation.

For instance, 51 per cent of the people polled believe integrity is an important attribute for a chief executive, but only 27 per cent feel corporate leaders were performing well in the area of ethics, responsibility and openness.

The Edelman press release:

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/2016-edelman-trust-barometer-finds-global-trust-inequality-is-growing-300205549.html

2016 Edelman Trust Barometer Finds Global Trust Inequality is Growing

Largest Ever Gap Now Exists Between Informed and Mass Populations

NEW YORK, Jan. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer reveals the largest ever trust gap (12 points) between the informed public and mass population, driven by income inequality and divergent expectations of the future. While trust levels among informed publics are the highest ever in 16 years, trust is below 50 percent for the mass population in over sixty percent of the countries surveyed, having barely moved since the Great Recession. The trust disparity has widened and is now at double digit levels in more than half of the countries surveyed. The U.S. presents the largest divide at nearly 20 points followed by the UK (17 points), France (16 points) and India (16 points).

"We are now observing the inequality of trust around the world," said Richard Edelman, president and CEO of Edelman. "This brings a number of potential consequences including the rise of populist politicians, the blocking of innovation and the onset of protectionism and nativism."

The widening gulf is directly linked to income inequality. A double-digit trust gap between high-income and low-income respondents is present in nearly two-thirds of the countries, with the U.S. (31 points), France (29 points) and Brazil (26 points) exhibiting the largest disparities. There are also diminished future expectations among the mass population. In more than two-thirds of the nations surveyed, less than half of the respondents believe they will be better off in five years' time.

The Barometer reveals that respondents are increasingly reliant on a "person like yourself", who, along with a regular employee, are significantly more trusted than a CEO or government official. On social networking and content-sharing sites, respondents are far more trusting of family and friends (78 percent) than a CEO (49 percent).

"We must get beyond 'The Grand Illusion' that the mass will continue to follow the elites," said Edelman. "This 'Illusion' was predicated on the belief that the informed publics have access to superior information, their interests are interconnected and that becoming 'an elite' was open to all who work hard. But the democratization of information, high-profile revelations of greed and misbehavior, coupled with rising income inequality, have squashed those beliefs. The trust of the mass population can no longer be taken for granted."

Despite the general population's skepticism of business, it has the best opportunity to bridge the trust chasm. Overall, respondents view business (61 percent) as the institution most trusted to keep pace with rapid change, far more than they do government (41 percent) and NGOs (55 percent). Business is also significantly more trusted than government in 21 of 28 countries, with large gaps in countries such as South Africa (44 points), Mexico (44 points) and the U.S. (12 points). And a decisive 80 percent believe business can both increase its profits while improving the economic and social conditions in the communities in which it operates.

Globally, business also received the largest uptick in trust (5 points to 53 percent) among the four institutions, while continuing to close the gap on NGOs (55 percent) as most trusted. This was aided by the continued recovery of the financial services sector (51 percent), which has seen an eight-point increase over the last five years, larger than any other sector. And for the sixteenth consecutive year, technology (74 percent) remains the most trusted industry.

The public is also responding positively to CEOs trying to realize the dual mandate of profit and societal benefit, as CEO trust has risen substantially in the past five years to 48 percent. But they will need the help of their employees, whose trust levels (52 percent) are on the rise. Respondents are more likely to trust an employee compared to a CEO for information on treatment of employees (48 percent versus 19 percent) and information on business practices and crises (30 percent versus 27 percent).

"Business can be a big part of the solution because it is apolitical, fast, and tracks its progress," said Kathryn Beiser, global practice chair of Edelman's Corporate practice. "Now is the time to lead from the front with the support of their employees and passionate customers. No longer can business leaders focus on short-term goals. The new model CEOs are taking action by addressing the issues of our time, and taking a personal interest in the success of society. Stakeholders expect business to have a solid and steady focus on financial returns, but also on actions around key issues such as education, healthcare and the environment."

Other key findings from the 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer include:

- Respondents want to see a shift in CEO focus from short-term results and lobbying to job creation (49 percent) and positive long-term impact (57 percent). They want business leaders more visible in discussions of income inequality and public policy (80 percent).
- Despite an increase of one point to 42 percent globally, government remains the least trusted institution for the fifth year running.
- Trust in NGOs went up in 81 percent of the countries surveyed with the most dramatic jumps occurring in China (17 points) and Mexico (11 points).
- Among the informed public, media made an impressive turnaround as trust increased in 20 of the 28 countries surveyed. The biggest gains were in the U.S. (16 points), Canada (14 points), UK (14 points) and Hong Kong (12 points).
- Globally, family-owned companies (66 percent) remain most trusted, trailed by public (52 percent) and state-owned (46 percent) businesses.
- Companies headquartered in developed markets are still more trusted than those based in developing markets. Canada, Sweden and Switzerland, all 66 percent, are most trusted, followed by Germany (64 percent).
- For the fifth consecutive year, search engines (63 percent) and traditional media (58 percent) remain the two most trusted sources for general news and information. Online media jumped 8 points to 53 percent and is now the third most trusted source, followed by owned media, which is up 3 points to 46 percent and social media (44 percent).

About Edelman

Edelman is a leading global communications marketing firm that partners with many of the world's largest and emerging businesses and organizations, helping them evolve, promote and protect their brands and reputations. Edelman was named one of Advertising Age's "Agency to Watch" in 2014; one of Forbes' "14 Most Influential Agencies of 2014"; and The Holmes Report's "2013 Global Agency of the Year." Edelman was awarded the Grand Prix Cannes Lion for PR in 2014 and was among Glassdoor's "Best Places to Work" for the third time in 2014. Edelman owns specialty firms Edelman Berland (research) and United Entertainment Group (entertainment, sports, experiential), a joint venture with United Talent Agency.

About the Edelman Trust Barometer

The 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer is the firm's 16th annual trust and credibility survey. The survey was powered by research firm Edelman Berland and consisted of 20-minute online interviews conducted on October 13th – November 16th, 2015. The 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer surveyed more than 33,000 respondents consisting of 1,150 general population respondents ages 18 and over and 500 informed public respondents in the U.S. and China and 200 informed public respondents in all other countries representing 15 percent of the total population across 28 countries. All informed publics met the following criteria: ages 25-64, college-educated; household income in the top 25 percent for their age in their country; report significant media consumption and engagement in business news and public policy. For more information, visit www.edelman.com/trust2016.

[Martinus]

Well, yeah. The masses will always prefer benevolent authoritarianism to any other form of government.

[MadImmortalMan]

Freedom, for example. The freedom to speak one's mind, to object, to dispute. She sighed. Those who had led the rebellion had underestimated the deeply buried desire of far too large a proportion of the population who simply preferred to be told what to do. Much easier it was to follow orders it was than to think for oneself. So everyone had argued and debated and discussed. Until it was too late.

[Monoriu]

Say, I never vote, never protest, etc.  Is that a manifestation of trust in the institutions, or lack thereof? 

[MadImmortalMan]

Say, I never vote, never protest, etc.  Is that a manifestation of trust in the institutions, or lack thereof? 

It's neither. It's relatively similar to the lawyer "morality" of serving their clients' needs. It's a necessary part of public life. If sometimes a distasteful one.

I'm actually not completely against public servants being barred from voting because I understand the conflict of interest there. It just feels wrong.

[Monoriu]

Say, I never vote, never protest, etc.  Is that a manifestation of trust in the institutions, or lack thereof? 

It's neither. It's relatively similar to the lawyer "morality" of serving their clients' needs. It's a necessary part of public life. If sometimes a distasteful one.

I'm actually not completely against public servants being barred from voting because I understand the conflict of interest there. It just feels wrong.

Just to clarify, all ciivl servants are allowed to vote in Hong Kong.  It is me who ban myself from voting.  I am not allowed to protest however.

[Eddie Teach]

Feels like the writers are trying to push a particular analysis too much when 60% vs 46% is described as "stark" and 61 is "far more" than 55.

[MadImmortalMan]

Let me understand, Mono. You can vote. You can donate to stuff, but you can't be in any parties or participate in any protests? Can you be a member of anything?

[Monoriu]

Let me understand, Mono. You can vote. You can donate to stuff, but you can't be in any parties or participate in any protests? Can you be a member of anything?

All civil servants have the right to vote.  We have to make special arrangements to allow staff to vote if we need to report duty on polling day.  Otherwise it is discrimination. 

Some civil servants are not allowed to protest or to join political parties or NGOs.  I belong to that category. 

Not sure about donations as I never bothered to read that part, as obviously I have no desire to do so under any circumstances 

[Razgovory]

Say, I never vote, never protest, etc.  Is that a manifestation of trust in the institutions, or lack thereof? 

Well, you are a lickspittle.

[Josquius]

How is that research into the noise ducks make doing?