ABSTRACT
This chapter looks at signals and evidence that trust is changing – both in the direction of more trust, and in the direction of less trust and more distrust. It discusses initiatives aimed at increasing trust and reducing distrust between citizens and the public sector, both at the institutional level, and at the level of specific encounters between citizens and public services or public servants. Public services are said to be either inefficient, wasteful and ineffective, or power-hungry with little eye for citizens' needs and desires. Citizen trust in the public sector is traditionally measured through opinion surveys that contain a number of items on the public sector. Low citizen trust in the public sector can be seen as a healthy attitude leading to proper oversight, and low public sector trust in citizens as a necessity to avoid abuse of public means.
