Confidence in institutions and social trust

The data presented in this article are taken from the survey Social coherence and Welfare conducted by Statistics Netherlands in 2012 and 2013. They are based upon 11 questions about confidence in other people and in 10 types of institutions. In 2012 and 2013, the number of respondents was 7,949. The results refer to people aged 15 years or older.

Social trust is defined by the question: ‘Do you think that - in general - most people are trustworthy or do you think you cannot be careful enough in your contacts with other people’ (yes/no). Confidence in institutions is measured by asking to what extent people have confidence in various political and social institutions. Respondents can choose between four answers (a lot of confidence; a fair amount of confidence; not so much confidence; no confidence at all).