24 March 2022
Go to release: Trust Survey December 2021
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) has today (24 March 2022) published results of the Trust Survey, December 2021.
Commenting on the Irish results of the OECD Trust Suvey, Senior Statistician, Gerry Reilly said: “In addition to questions on interpersonal and institutional trust, respondents to the survey were asked to rate their satisfaction levels with specific public services. They were also asked about their expectations related to behaviours of public sector employees, politicians, and public institutions and to evaluate government action on certain key long-term challenges (e.g. climate change)."
Highlights from each chapter of the Trust Survey:
“Respondents were asked to rate their trust levels in most people, the Gardaí, the national government, their local authority, political parties, the courts and legal system, the civil service and the news media on a 0–10-point scale, where 0 was ‘Not at all’ and 10 was ‘Completely’. The average score for each trust level indicator was calculated by adding individual scores and dividing the total by the number of individuals. In line with the OECD’s recommended groupings, responses were also grouped as Don’t trust (0-4), Neutral (5), or Trust (6-10). Trust.
The highest average scores were for trust in most people and trust in the Gardaí, both at 6.7. The lowest average scores were for trust in political parties at 3.8 and for trust in the news media at 4.8. The average scores of respondents for the remainder of the trust indicators were 5.1 for trust in the national government, 4.9 for trust in their local authority, 6.5 for trust in the courts and legal system and 6.2 for trust in the civil service.
Trust levels in most people increased with respondents’ age. Almost one in 10 (9%) respondents aged 18-44 Don’t trust (0-4) most people, more than double the rate (4%) for respondents aged 65 and over. More than seven in 10 (71%) respondents aged 18-44 Trust (6-10) most people. For respondents aged 65 and over this rate is 84%.
Respondents who voted in the last general election for a party currently in government had higher average scores for all trust indicators when compared with respondents who voted for a party in opposition. For example, their average scores when compared with respondents who voted for an opposition party were; 5.9 compared with 3.7 for trust in the national government, 5.5 compared with 4.0 for trust in their local authority, 4.3 compared with 2.9 for trust in political parties, 7.2 compared with 6.0 for trust in the Gardaí and 6.9 compared with 5.9 for trust in the courts and legal system.
Overall, half (51%) of respondents Trust (6-10) the national government, while 45% Trust (6-10) their local authority, and one in four (25%) Trust (6-10) political parties.
Respondents who use social media at least once a week, as one of their sources of information about politics and current affairs, had a lower mean score (4.6) in trust for the news media when compared with respondents who do not use social media as an information source (5.0).
The percentage of male respondents who Trust (6-10) the Gardaí is the same as the percentage who Trust (6-10) the courts and legal system (both at 72%). Whereas the percentage of female respondents who Trust (6-10) the Gardaí is 15 percentage points higher than the percentage who Trust (6-10) the courts and legal system (79% and 64% respectively).
Nine in 10 (90%) respondents believe that a lost wallet or purse containing €100 and their identity details (if lost in the respondent’s local area) would be returned to them if it was found by a Garda. If it was found by a neighbour, 96% of respondents would expect its return and 36% would expect its return if it was found by a stranger.
Two in three (67%) respondents living in rural areas would be Very comfortable asking a neighbour to keep a set of keys to their home for emergencies, for example if they were locked out. The comparable rate for survey respondents who live in towns is 52%.
Respondents were asked to rate on a 0–10-point scale where, 0 was ‘Not at all satisfied’ and 10 was ‘Completely satisfied’, their satisfaction levels with the quality of the health system, the education system, and administrative services [1]. The average score for each satisfaction level indicator was calculated by adding individual scores and dividing the total by the number of individuals. In line with the OECD’s recommended groupings, responses were also grouped as Not satisfied (0-4), Neutral (5) or Satisfied (6-10).
The average scores for satisfaction levels with the quality of the health, education, and administrative systems were 4.0, 6.3 and 6.0 respectively. Overall, 56% of respondents were Not satisfied (0-4) with the quality of the health system. One in four (25%) were Not satisfied (0-4) with the quality of the administrative services and one in five (20%) were Not satisfied (0-4) with the quality of the education system.
Satisfaction levels with the quality of the education system, the health system and administrative services increased with respondents’ age. For example, seven in 10 (71%) respondents aged 18-44 were Not satisfied (0-4) with the quality of the health system, the comparable rate for respondents aged 45-64 was just over half (52%) and for those aged 65 and over, four in 10 (39%). Satisfaction with Public Services.
[1] e.g., applying for an ID or a certificate of birth, death, marriage, or divorce
Respondents were asked to rate on a 0–10-point scale from ‘0 Very unlikely’ to ’10 Very likely’ their belief in the likely behaviour of public sector employees, politicians, and public institutions in certain situations. In line with the OECD’s recommended groupings, responses were also grouped as Unlikely (0-4), Neutral (5) or Likely (6-10).
Almost six in 10 (59%) survey respondents believe it is Unlikely (0-4) that a senior politician would refuse the prospect of a well-paid job in the private sector in exchange for a political favour, whereas one in four (26%) believe it is Likely (6-10).
Overall, almost four in 10 (39%) respondents believe it is Unlikely (0-4) that a public sector employee would refuse money to speed up access to a public service, while a similar percentage (43%) believe it is Likely (6-10) the offer of money would be refused.
Almost six in 10 (58%) respondents believe it is Likely (6-10) that a court would make the decision that could negatively impact on the government’s image, free from political influence. This is almost double the rate (30%) who believe it is Unlikely (0-4).
Half (50%) of respondents believe it is Likely (6-10) that a public sector employee would treat all people equally regardless of their gender, sexual identity, ethnicity, or country of origin. One in three (34%) respondents believe it is Unlikely (0-4).
Respondents were asked to rate the likelihood that the personal data they share with a public agency is exclusively used for legitimate purposes. Almost two in three (65%) respondents believe it is Likely (6-10) and one in five (21%) believe it is Unlikely (0-4) the data is exclusively used for legitimate purposes.
One in three (33%) survey respondents believe it is Likely (6-10) and more than half (55%) believe it is Unlikely (0-4) that the public service would be improved if many people complained about the service that is working badly.
The percentage of respondents who believe it is Likely (6-10) that a national policy would be changed if more than half of the people clearly express a view against the policy is almost the same as the percentage who believe it is Unlikely (0-4) (38% and 37% respectively).
Six in 10 (60%) respondents believe it is Likely (6-10) that government institutions will be prepared to protect people’s lives if a new serious contagious disease spreads. Three in 10 (29%) believe it is unlikely.
Respondents were asked how much they believe the political system in Ireland allows people (like themselves) to have a say in what the government does. Overall, 16% of respondents answered, ‘Not at all’, 38% answered ‘Very little’, 38% answered ‘Some’, 6% answered ‘A lot’ and 2% answered ‘A great deal’. Expectations in Behaviour.
Respondents were asked their opinion related to the level of priority that the government should be giving to various long-term policies and global challenges, with possible responses of: ’A lot more’, ‘More’, ‘About the same’, ‘Less’ and ‘A lot less’. More than three in five (61%) respondents believe increased priority should be given to providing equal opportunities for all, with more than two in five (42%) responding that the level of priority should be ‘More’ and a further one in five (19%) that it should be ‘A lot more’.
Half (50%) of respondents believe increased priority should be given to reducing job losses due to automation and new technologies. Seven in 10 (69%) respondents believe the government should place additional priority on creating the conditions for businesses to thrive. More than five in 10 (53%) believe increased priority should be given to reducing public debt.
Almost seven in 10 (68%) respondents believe increased priority should be given to reducing the country's contribution to climate change. Three in 10 (31%) believe the priority level should be ‘A lot more’. When asked ‘How confident are you that Ireland will succeed in reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the next 10 years?’, with answer options of ‘Not at all confident’, ‘A little confident’, ‘Quite confident’, ‘Very confident’ and ‘Completely confident’; almost two in five (39%) respondents answered, ‘Not at all confident’ with a similar percentage (40%) answering ‘A little confident’.” Opinions on Government Policy Priority Levels and Other Results.
Ireland was a participant country in the 2021 round of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s (OECD) Trust Survey. The Trust Survey monitors people’s self-reported interpersonal trust and trust in different institutions and levels of government across OECD countries. Ireland was one of 20 countries that participated in the 2021 round of the survey and it is expected that the OECD will publish inter country results from this survey in June 2022.
Trust Survey, December 2021 was an online survey based on a sample of 5,152 persons aged 18 and over, resulting in an achieved sample size of 1,135 individuals. Percentages in this press release are rounded to whole numbers. Note that due to resource constraints, there were limitations on the sample size and selection methodology. This is a Frontier Publication and care must be taken when interpreting the statistics in this release. Frontier Series
Gerry Reilly - (+353) 87 2505165 or (+353) 21 453 5700
or email icw@cso.ie
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