Trust and Democracy: Political Stability in Times of Economic Crisis
利用覆盖六十年的跨国面板数据，研究发现经济衰退更易导致低信任度民主国家的政治更迭，凸显普遍信任在经济动荡时期对政治稳定的关键作用。
Abstract We study the relationship between interpersonal trust and political stability in democratic countries. Using an annual country-level panel dataset covering six decades, we find that recessions are more likely to cause political turnover in countries with lower levels of generalised interpersonal trust. The effect is present in democracies and not autocracies, for turnovers occurring through regular procedures and not coups, and during regularly scheduled election years. We find an analogous connection between trust and leader turnover during recessions when looking across sub-national regions in Europe, across counties in the United States, and across individuals in U.S. counties. Our results highlight the crucial role of generalised trust in ensuring political stability during times of economic turmoil.