Participation or Satisfaction? Examining Determinant of Trust in Local Government

Abstract


 
 
 Trust is an essential part of a legitimate political system. Based on data collected among Norwegian citizens, this article investigates the effects on trust in local politicians by influence on versus satisfaction with local services. The theoretical base for the article is the two differing theories which argue that citizen either regard themselves as consumers or citizens of (local) government. The article argues that people, when evaluating trust towards local politics, tend to apply customer-oriented factors to a greater extent than citizen-oriented factors. However, we do not find support for a claim that customer- oriented factors have replaced citizen-oriented factors as such. Thus we argue that the two considerations appear to be complimentary rather than mutually exclusive.
 
 

The legitimacy of local government in the Australian federation

“…As briefly noted here, albeit explored further in several studies of Scandinavian local government (a region where trust in public authorities is generally very high), both input and output legitimacies could be interacting with or moderated by throughputs and particularly trust in the system (Gustavsen et al, 2014(Gustavsen et al, , 2017Pierre & Røiseland, 2016). Many of the elements that are now considered throughputs, such as the quality of processes, have traditionally been regarded as inputs.…”

“…A survey was developed and distributed to a representative sample of Victorian residents. Many of the survey items about local government quality and performance were derived from surveys designed by Gustavsen, Pierre, and Røiseland, which were the basis of several studies on Scandinavian local government (see Gustavsen et al, 2014Gustavsen et al, , 2017Pierre & Røiseland, 2016). These studies identified the three most important functions of local government in Norway and Sweden, which have been changed to suit the Australian context.…”

Local governmentsʼ accountability and public trust in Nepal: Does participation make a difference?

“…(2016) extend this exploration, investigating the effects of performance and participation on trust in government institutions in the Dominican Republic and Haiti, offering cross‐cultural insights. In determining trust in local government, Gustavsen, Pierre, and Røiselandʼs study (2017) explores the roles of participation and satisfaction. Campbellʼs experiment (2023) adds experimental insights, causally examining the relationship between public participation and trust using vignettes.…”

The effects of transparency regulation on political trust and perceived corruption: Evidence from a survey experiment

“…"Getting things done" and focusing on improving voters' (financial) position is assumed to be a priority in an individual's evaluation of elected representatives. There is evidence that citizens heavily rely on performance-related factors such as the quality of public services when assigning trust in politicians (Gustavsen et al, 2017). Even when these are weighted against issues of integrity, voters often prioritize politicians' competences over trustworthiness, especially if this is expected to benefit them (Galeotti & Zizzo, 2014Winters & Weitz-Shapiro, 2016).…”