Citizen expectations are key to their trust in government. As citizens become more educated, their expectations of government performance rise. If citizens’ expectations rise faster than the actual performance of governments, trust and satisfaction could decline. These changes in expectations may explain more of the erosion of political support than real government performance (Dalton, 2005) and may surprise policy makers that are anchored in past diagnoses.
In addition, citizens’ trust towards government is influenced differently whether they have a positive or negative experience with service delivery. A negative experience has a much stronger impact on trust in government than a positive one. Targeting public policies towards dissatisfied citizens will therefore have a stronger impact on trust in government (Kampen et al., 2006).
Much of the analysis on citizens’ trust in government also applies to businesses and even to the government’s own employees, but the formation of perceptions and the factors that influence them may be different.
Why does trust in government matter?
Trust in government has been identified as one of the most important foundations upon which the legitimacy and sustainability of political systems are built. Trust is essential for social cohesion and well-being as it affects governments’ ability to govern and enables them to act without having to resort to coercion. Consequently, it is an efficient means of lowering transaction costs in any social, economic and political relationship (Fukuyama, 1995). A high level of trust in government might increase the efficiency and effectiveness of government operations.
GOVERNMENT AT A GLANCE 2013 © OECD 2013
