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On changes in general trust in Europe

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  • Javier Olivera

    (UCD Geary Institute, University College Dublin)

Abstract

This paper analyses the determinants of trust in a pool of 33 European countries over the period 2002-2010. We find that income inequality is negatively related with trust when we analyse pooled data of individuals, which is a well established result if one focuses on crosscountry differences. But, this relation vanishes when we estimate a fixed effects model with the data collapsed by country and year. Omitted variables may account for the significant and negative relationship between economic inequality and trust at the cross-sectional level. In contrast, we find a sizeable, negative and significant effect of the share of persons from minority ethnic groups on trust. This result is found in different specifications for the trust index and distribution of trust.

Suggested Citation

  • Javier Olivera, 2013. "On changes in general trust in Europe," Working Papers 201301, Geary Institute, University College Dublin.
    • Handle: RePEc:ucd:wpaper:201301
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Hobbs, Jill E. & Goddard, Ellen, 2015. "Consumers and trust," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 71-74.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Trust; Income Inequality; Europe; Social Attitudes;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D31 - Microeconomics - - Distribution - - - Personal Income and Wealth Distribution
    • D63 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement
    • Z13 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification

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