This study examines the mediating role of trust in government on the relationship between fear of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID‐19) and compliance with social distancing. A cross‐sectional survey was conducted among 740 Jordanian citizens, and path analysis (SmartPLS 2.0) was conducted to analyze the data. Results show that fear of COVID‐19 has a positive effect on both compliance with social distancing (t = 6.777, p = .000) and trust in government (t = 7.968, p = .000); trust in government has a positive effect on compliance with social distancing (t = 8.502, p = .000); and trust in government partially mediates the relationship between fear of COVID‐19 and compliance with social distancing (Sobel test = 6.17, p = .000). The effect of fear of COVID‐19 on compliance with social distancing, with trust in the government as a mediating variable, is greater than the direct effect without the mediating variable. Therefore, it is suggested that for social distancing measures imposed by the government on citizens to be effective, policymakers must work to enhance citizens' trust in the government and its measures aimed at curbing the outbreak of COVID‐19. Limitations, implications, and suggestions for future research are discussed.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.