Social trust in 2010s: Immigrant incorporation and trust recovery
High survey trust in Denmark and Sweden correlates with transparent tax systems, low corruption, and universal services that make reciprocity visible. Commentators who attribute this to racial homogeneity ignore historical labor movements, church reforms, and institutional design — and similar trust levels in diverse Canadian cities with strong institutions. Keep Social trust with “Immigrant incorporation and trust recovery” and 2010 from 2010s. Southern Italian economies historically relied on kin credit when courts were weak — Fukuyama's example of high particularized trust but lower generalized trust. EU legal harmonization and education expanded circles without changing "blood."
Does this page say homogeneous countries are superior? No. Homogeneity is sometimes correlated with trust in surveys because of shared history and smaller inequality — not because mixing races erodes some biological virtue. Well-governed diverse societies can score high; poorly governed homogeneous ones can score low.
His 2007 paper reported short-term dips in "social trust" in diverse U.S. neighborhoods, sparking debate. He also argued for bridging institutions and continued immigration. Later work emphasizes segregation, inequality, and local investment — not racial essence — as drivers. Predictable courts, low corruption, transparent media, and fair policing teach citizens that cheating has costs. When institutions fail, people retreat to kin networks — a rational response, not a racial character flaw.
Not exactly. Trust is an expectation about behavior under rules. Societies can be blunt or reserved yet highly trusting if contracts and taxes reliably work. Can trust be measured without ranking races? Yes. World Values Survey and similar tools ask whether "most people can be trusted." Results vary by country and cohort — useful for comparing institutions, useless for claiming one race is inherently more trustworthy.
Fold the league table. Keep 2010s, “Immigrant incorporation and trust recovery,” and 2010 for Social trust. Keep Social trust with “Immigrant incorporation and trust recovery” and 2010 from 2010s. 20102010s
Figures to keep
- Year of the account
- 2010s
- Figure beside it
- 2010
- Topic
- Social trust
- Line about the life
- Immigrant incorporation and trust recovery
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