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Political Identity and Trust

Author

Listed:
  • Pablo Hernandez

    (New York University AD)

  • Dylan Minor

    (Harvard Business School, Strategy Unit)

Abstract

We explore how political identity affects trust. Using an incentivized experimental survey conducted on a representative sample of the U.S. population, we vary information about partners' partisan identity to elicit trust behavior, beliefs about trustworthiness, and actual reciprocation. By eliciting beliefs, we are able to assess whether differences in trust rates are due to stereotyping or a "taste for discrimination." By measuring actual trustworthiness, we are able to determine whether beliefs are statistically correct. We find that trust is pervasive and depends on the partisan identity of the trustee. Differential trust rates are explained by incorrect stereotypes about the other's lack of trustworthiness rather than by a "taste for discrimination." Given the importance of beliefs, we run additional treatments in which we disclose previous reciprocation rates before participants decide whether to trust. We find that beliefs are slightly more optimistic compared with the previous treatments, suggesting that incorrect stereotypes are hard to change.

Suggested Citation

  • Pablo Hernandez & Dylan Minor, 2015. "Political Identity and Trust," Harvard Business School Working Papers 16-012, Harvard Business School.
    • Handle: RePEc:hbs:wpaper:16-012
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Ali Fakih & Rasha Khayat, 2022. "Social identity, confidence in institutions, and youth: Evidence from the Arab Spring," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 103(5), pages 997-1018, September.
    2. Giorgia Ponsi & Maria Serena Panasiti & Salvatore Maria Aglioti & Marco Tullio Liuzza, 2017. "Right-wing authoritarianism and stereotype-driven expectations interact in shaping intergroup trust in one-shot vs multiple-round social interactions," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 12(12), pages 1-23, December.
    3. He, Haoran & Jiang, Shuguang, 2020. "Partisan culture, identity and corruption: An experiment based on the Chinese Communist Party," China Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 60(C).

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    Keywords

    Trust; Beliefs; Social Preferences; Political Ideology;
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