Patterns of Political Trust and Mistrust: Three Moments in the Lives of Democratic Citizens

It is now well known that there has been a remarkable decline in the number of Americans who believe that the government can be trusted to do the right thing "most of the time." In this paper, we try to identify those experiences and factors that might best account for varying levels of trust and mistrust among citizens. Using a panel study, we learn that early political socialization experiences in school and participation as an adult in community associations only account for modest differences among citizens who do or do not trust the government. More significant is their reaction to major political events such as the Vietnam War or the Watergate scandal. Earlier levels of personal and political trust are the single best predictor to later levels of trust. But trust, once lost, is difficult for a government to regain. The generation of trust has itself become a more highly politicized process, one that calls into question the civil society thesis which imagines governments as the direct beneficiaries of social capital.