By Michelle Winowatan, Andrew J. Zahuranec, Andrew Young, Stefaan Verhulst
The Living Library Index – inspired by the Harper’s Index – provides important statistics and highlights global trends in governance innovation. This installment focuses on trust in institutions.
Please share any additional, illustrative statistics on open data, or other issues at the nexus of technology and governance, with us at info@thelivinglib.org
Global Trust in Public Institutions
- Percentage of citizens globally with trust in institutions: 52% – 2019
- Most trusted institution globally: United Nations (59%) – 2019
- Global trust in NGOs: 56% – 2019
- Percentage of people around the world who trust their government: 47% – 2019
- Countries with the lowest trust in their public institutions: Russia (29%), Japan (39%), Spain (40%), Ireland (42%), and United Kingdom: 43% – 2019
- Most Trusted Institution in Latin America: The Church (65%) – 2017
Trust in Government
United States
- Americans who say their democracy is working at least “somewhat well:” 58% – 2018
- Number who believe sweeping changes to their government are needed: 61% – 2018
- Percentage of Americans expressing faith in election system security: 45% – 2018
- Percentage of Americans expressing an overarching trust in government: 40% – 2019
- How Americans would rate the trustworthiness of Congress: 4.1 out of 10 – 2017
- The judicial system: 5.2 out of 10 – 2017
- The civil service: 5.4 out of 10 – 2017
- The police: 6.2 out of 10 – 2017
- Number who have confidence elected officials act in the best interests of the public: 25% – 2018
- Amount who trust the federal government to do what is right “just about always or most of the time”: 18% – 2017
- Americans with trust and confidence in the federal government to handle domestic problems: 2 in 5 – 2018
- International problems: 1 in 2 – 2018
- US institution with highest amount of confidence to act in the best interests of the public: The Military (80%) – 2018
- Most favorably viewed level of government: Local (67%) – 2018
- Most favorably viewed federal agency: National Park Service (83% favorable) – 2018
- Least favorable federal agency: Immigration and Customs Enforcement (47% unfavorable) – 2018
United Kingdom
- Overall trust in government: 42% – 2019
- Number who think the country is headed in the “wrong direction:” 7 in 10 – 2018
- Those who have trust in politicians: 17% – 2018
- Amount who feel unrepresented in politics: 61% – 2019
- Amount who feel that their standard of living will get worse over the next year: Nearly 4 in 10 – 2019
- Trust the national government handling of personal data:
- Seeking consent when it comes to data collection: Fewer than 1 in 3 – 2018
- Being transparent about how it is used: 1 in 4 – 2018
- Protecting personal data: Fewer than 1 in 3 – 2018
- Encrypting data: Fewer than 1 in 3 – 2018
- Managing data in the source’s best interests: Fewer than 1 in 3 – 2018
European Union
- Public trust in the European Union: 59% – 2018
- Citizens who are optimistic about the future of the European Union: 66% – 2018
- Most trusted institution in the European Union: European Parliament (50%) – 2018
- Highest level of trust in the European Parliament: Sweden (71%) – 2018
- Lowest level of trust in the European Parliament: Greece (39%) – 2018
- Highest source of concern about the internet during the pre-election period: Disinformation and Misinformation on the Internet (almost 3 in 4 expressed concerns) – 2018
- Country with the highest concern: Spain and Greece (84%) – 2018
- Country with the lowest concern: Estonia (56%) – 2018
- Overall Concern for elections being manipulated through cyberattacks: 61% – 2018
- Highest Concern: Spain (74%) – 2018
- Lowest Concern: Estonia (42%) – 2018
- Most confident their country was doing what was needed to prevent illegal or fraudulent election activities: Finland (88%) – 2018
- Least confidence: Bulgaria (31%) – 2018
- Number of EU member-states satisfied with free and fair elections in their country: 27 – 2018
- Number of EU member-states dissatisfied with free and fair elections 1 (Bulgaria) – 2018
- Europeans who are convinced that the EU is a secure place to live in: 7 in 10, declining since 2015 – 2018
- EU citizens trust in the European national governments: 49% – 2018
- EU countries with the highest trust in government: Luxembourg (almost 3 in 4) – 2018
- EU countries with the lowest trust in government: Greece (about 1 in 10) – 2018
- Those who think that the national authorities are doing enough to combat terrorism: 6 in 10 – 2018
- Most trusted actor to address corruption: Police – 2017
- France: 6.1 out of 10 – 2017
- Germany: 6.8 out of 10 – 2017
- Italy: 5.1 out of 10 – 2017
- Slovenia: 5.9 out of 10 – 2017
- United Kingdom: 5.9 out of 10 – 2017
- Those who are confident that justice always prevails over injustice in their country: 39% – 2017
- Support for the independence of European courts and judges: almost 1 in 2 – 2018
- General public who think the independence of European courts and judges is good: 56% – 2018
Africa
- Trust in government across Africa: 57% – 2016
- Most trusted institutional actor across Africa: Religious Leaders (72%) – 2016
- Least trusted: Opposition Party (36%) – 2016
- Country with highest level of trust in the state (president or prime minister, army and police): Niger (86%) – 2016
- Lowest: Nigeria (31%) – 2016
- Highest trust in the courts: Niger (82%) – 2016
- Lowest: Madagascar (29%) – 2016
- Highest Trust in Parliament: Namibia (74%) – 2016
- Lowest: Nigeria (25%) – 2016
Latin America
- Confidence in government across Latin America: Only 1 in 4 trust their leaders – 2018
- Highest confidence in government: Nicaragua (42%) – 2017
- Lowest confidence in government: Brazil (8%) – 2017
- Highest confidence in the legislature: Venezuela (37%) – 2017
- Lowest confidence in the legislature: Paraguay (10%) – 2017
- Highest Confidence in Political Parties: Uruguay (25%) – 2017
- Lowest Confidence in Political Parties: Brazil (7%) – 2017
- Dissatisfaction with democracy: 13 in 20 – 2017
- Confidence in political parties: 3 in 20 – 2017
- Overall Trust in the Judiciary: 34% – 2018
Other
- Most trusted institution in China: Government (86%) – 2019
- What the Chinese public considers to be the largest problem facing the country: Corrupt Officials (49%) – 2016
- Number of people who trust their government in India: 17 in 20 – 2017
- Canada: about 2 in 3 – 2017
- Russia: about 2 in 3 – 2017
- Mexico: less than 1 in 5 – 2017
- Lebanon: 3 in 20 – 2017
Trust in Media
- Percentage of people around the world who trust the media: 47% – 2019
- Rating of news trustworthiness in the United States: 4.5 out of 10 – 2017
- In South Korea: 4.0 out of 10 – 2017
- Number of citizens who trust the press across the European Union: Almost 1 in 2 – 2019
- France: 3.9 out of 10 – 2019
- Germany: 4.8 out of 10 – 2019
- Italy: 3.8 out of 10 – 2019
- Slovenia: 3.9 out of 10 – 2019
- Percentage of European Union citizens who trust the radio: 59% – 2017
- EU citizens who do not actively participate in political discussions on social networks because they don’t trust online social networks: 3 in 10 – 2018
- Those who are confident that the average person in the United Kingdom can tell real news from ‘fake news’: 3 in 10 – 2018
Trust in Business
- Global trust in business: 56% – 2019
- Number of Americans who believe pharmaceutical companies have too much power: More than 4 in 5 – 2018
- Banks and Financial Institutions: Almost 3 in 4 – 2018
- Advertisers: Over 7 in 10 – 2018
- Energy Industry: Over 11 in 20 – 2018
- Technology Companies: 11 in 20 – 2018
- The most trusted business sector globally: Technology (78%) – 2019
- Americans who trust technology companies to “do what is right:” More than 17 in 20 – 2018
- British citizens who feel technology companies will seek their consent on data collection: 25% trust; 27% distrust – 2018
- British citizens who feel technology companies will be transparent on how they use data: 23% trust; 33% distrust – 2018
- British citizens who feel technology companies will protect personal data: 26% trust; 29% distrust – 2018
- British citizens who trust technology companies to encrypt their personal data: 31% trust; 25% distrust – 2018
- Least trusted business sector globally: Financial Services (57%) – 2019
- Trustworthiness of the Financials Services industry as rated by French citizens: 3.9 out of 10 – 2017
- Germans: 4.5 out of 10 – 2017
- Italians: 3.5 out of 10 – 2017
- Slovenians: 4.5 out of 10 – 2017
- South Koreans: 5.1 out of 10 – 2017
- Brits: 4.9 out of 10 – 2017
- Americans: 5.6 out of 10 – 2017
- Millennials who trust in companies to keep their personal information private: 44%, the highest compared to other generations – 2016
- Percentage of American citizens confident that business leaders will act in the best interests of the public: 45% – 2018
- Professions least trusted to tell the truth in the United Kingdom: Advertising Executives (16%) – 2018
Sources
- 1. Many unhappy with
current political system. Pew Research Center, 2017. - Afrobarometer: Round 6. Afrobarometer. 2016.
- Ambitious SDG goal confronts challenging realities: Access to justice is still elusive for many Africans. Afrobarometer, 2017.
- Chinese Public Sees More Powerful Role in World, Names U.S. as Top Threat. Pew Research Center, 2016.
- Confiana en los partidos políticos cae nueve puntos porcentuales desde 2013, se acentúa la crisis de respresentación. Latinobarometro, 2017.
- Confianza en el congreso cae doce puntos porcentuales desde 2010 en América Latina. La crisis de representación se acentúa. Latinobarometro, 2017.
- Corruption. European Commission, 2017.
- Data Security: Not a Big Concern for Millennials. Gallup, 2016.
- Desde 2010 la satisfacción con la democracia en América Latina ha caído 14 puntos porcentuales. Latinobarometro, 2017.
- Edelman Trust Barometer. Edelman, 2019.
- Eurobarometer interactive: And, for each of them, please tell me if you tend to trust it or not to trust it? The European Parliament. European Commission, 2018.
- Eurobarometer Interactive: I would like to ask you a question about how much trust you have in certain media and institutions. For the following media and institutions, please tell me if you tend to trust it or tend not to trust it: Radio. European Commission, 2017.
- Eurobarometer Interactive: I would like to ask you a question about how much trust you have in certain media and institutions. For the following media and institutions, please tell me if you tend to trust it or tend not to trust it: Television. European Commission, 2017.
- Eurobarometer Interactive: I would like to ask you a question about how much trust you have in certain media and institutions. For the following media and institutions, please tell me if you tend to trust it or tend not to trust it: The Internet. European Commission, 2017.
- Eurobarometer Interactive: I would like to ask you a question about how much trust you have in certain media and institutions. For the following media and institutions, please tell me if you tend to trust it or tend not to trust it: Online social networks. European Commission, 2017.
- Eurobarometer: Democracy and elections. European Commission, 2018.
- European Parliament the most trusted EU institution. European Parliament, 2018.
- Fairness, inequality and inter-generational mobility. European Commission, 2018.
- Ipsos MORI Almanac 2018. Ipsos MORI, 2018.
- Job performance of MPs, local
councillors : Are representatives serving voters or themselves? Afrobarometer, 2016. - La confianza en los gobiernos latinoamericanos alcanza su nivel más bajo desde 2004. Latinobarometro, 2017.
- Latin American Economic Outlook 2018: Rethinking Institutions for Development. OECD Development Centre, 2018.
- Perceived independence of the national justice systems in the EU among companies. European Commission, 2018.
- Perceived independence of the national justice systems in the EU among the general public. European Commission, 2018.
- The State of the Nation. Ipsos MORI, 2018.
- Trust in Government. Gallup Poll, 2018.
- Trust in the Digital Era. Pew Research Center, 2018.
- Trust in the military exceeds trust in other institutions in Western Europe and U.S. Pew Research Center, 2018.
- Trust, Facts, and Democracy: 1. Democracy and government, the U.S. political system, elected officials and governmental institutions. Pew Research Centre, 2018.
- Trustlab. OECD, 2017.