Edelman Trust Barometer

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Credibility Rating

3/5

Good(3)

Good quality. Reputable source with community review or editorial standards, but less rigorous than peer-reviewed venues.

Rating inherited from publication venue: Edelman

A widely-cited annual benchmark for societal trust levels; relevant background for AI safety researchers thinking about public legitimacy of AI governance institutions and the epistemic environment in which AI deployment decisions are made.

Metadata

Importance: 38/100organizational reportdataset

Summary

The Edelman Trust Barometer is an annual global survey measuring public trust in institutions including government, media, business, and NGOs across dozens of countries. It tracks shifts in societal trust and credibility, revealing trends such as declining trust in media and experts. The data is widely cited in discussions about epistemic health, misinformation, and democratic governance.

Key Points

•Surveys tens of thousands of respondents across 28+ countries annually to measure trust in four institutions: government, media, business, and NGOs.
•Consistently documents declining trust in media and government in many democracies, with implications for information ecosystems and public discourse.
•Highlights the 'trust gap' between informed elites and the general population, relevant to science communication and expert credibility.
•Tracks credibility of different information sources (journalists, scientists, CEOs), useful for understanding epistemic authority in society.
•Data relevant to AI governance concerns about public trust in institutions that will regulate or deploy AI systems.

Cited by 1 page

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### Why we study Trust

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## We believe Trust is the ultimate currency

We have studied trust for more than [25 years](https://www.edelman.com/trust/25years) and believe that it is the ultimate currency in the relationship that all institutions — business, governments, NGOs and media — build with their stakeholders. Trust defines an organization’s license to operate, lead and succeed. Trust is the foundation that allows an organization to take responsible risk, and, if it makes mistakes, to rebound from them. For a business, especially, lasting trust is the strongest insurance against competitive disruption, the antidote to consumer indifference, and the best path to continued growth. Without trust, credibility is lost and reputation can be threatened.

Edelman’s trust research, the [Edelman Trust Barometer](https://www.edelman.com/trust/trust-barometer), turns the deep data we collect into real-world insights; our trust consulting platform, [Edelman Trust Management](https://www.edelman.com/trust/edelman-trust-management), interprets those insights to help our clients plan, make decisions and take action; and our research institute and learning laboratory, [Edelman Trust Institute](https://www.edelman.com/edelman-trust-institute), publishes data-driven insights that inform leadership, strategy, policy and sustained action across institutions.

[DOWNLOAD 2026 TRUST BAROMETER REPORT](https://www.edelman.com/trust/2026/trust-barometer "2026 TRUST BAROMETER REPORT")

25 Years of the Edelman Trust Barometer - YouTube

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[25 Years of the Edelman Trust Barometer](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AXSs3x-kPO0)

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[25 YEARS OF TRUST](https://www.edelman.com/trust/25years "25 YEARS OF TRUST")

# Our Trust Products

[**Edelman Trust Institute**](https://www.edelman.com/trust/edelman-trust-institute)

[Find Out More](https://www.edelman.com/trust/edelman-trust-institute "")

[**Edelman Trust Barometer**](https://www.edelman.com/trust/trust-barometer)

[Find Out More](https://www.edelman.com/trust/trust-barometer "")

[**Edelman Trust Management**](https://www.edelman.com/trust/edelman-trust-management)

[Find Out More](https://www.edelman.com/trust/edelman-trust-management "")

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