A virus of distrust? existential insecurity and trust during the coronavirus pandemic

Trust is widely considered a critical resource for modern societies, and in times of crisis like the coronavirus pandemic, its importance is even greater: More than ever we depend on fellow citizens to behave responsibly, and on institutional actors to make the right decisions. Looking at trust from an existential security point of view, this paper investigates trust’s relationship with pandemic-induced insecurities. We explore how levels of social trust (trust in strangers) and institutional trust (trust in the government and in the public healthcare system) have developed over the pandemic period, and how trust relates to individuals’ experiences of sickness and economic hardship as well as respective fears. Using panel data from Germany and the United Kingdom for 2020 and 2021, we find that average levels of trust have remained quite stable. Nevertheless, whereas individuals’ social trust is largely unrelated to insecurities, institutional trust is strengthened by health-related insecurities and weakened by economic insecurities. In both countries, pandemic-induced fears matter more for institutional trust than experienced insecurities. Our results indicate the importance of expectation management, and suggest that the economic and health implications of the pandemic should be regarded as separate challenges