Political Trust and Asian Societies: Explaining Chinese Exceptionalism to the Paradox of Distance

• In Event: 415 - Regular Session. Political Culture

Abstract

Abstract: In many countries the majority of citizens trust the people running the government and specific institutions but not government in the abstract, a phenomenon known as “the paradox of distance”. Yet despite its potential importance for how we conceptualize trust, research on the paradox of distance remains at an aggregate level. In this article we analyze the paradox of distance for individuals located within 13 Asian societies and, in the process, show that China is an exceptional case. Compared to citizens of other Asian societies, Chinese citizens have more trust in the national government than in local political institutions. We then consider whether this inverted paradox is explained by the fact that the key factors identified in the trust literature - surveillance, culture, and performance- operate differently in China. Our analysis of the 2005-2008 Asia Barometer Survey data demonstrates that this is in fact the case. Surveillance, cultural orientation, and government performance show differential effects in China. We conclude that this is because in the Chinese context trust has a different meaning more akin to metaphysical faithfulness than it does in other societies.

Authors

• Cary Wu, University of British Columbia

• Rima Wilkes, The University of British of Columbia