ABSTRACT
This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book focuses on trust as relational rather than dispositional. It explores some of the determinants of trust, including family structures and the level and degree of attention given to children by their parents. The book explores some individuals are generally more trusting than others, and such trust might be rooted in a moral foundation, even in childhood experiences. It also explores foundational concepts of trust from two different perspectives. The book describes the decline of "thick" trust, or trust based on shared social confidence, and the ways that its centrality to society can be understood through principles of Catholic social teaching. It explains whether parental bonding in early childhood leads to greater trust in adulthood. The book describes the relationship between trust and ethnic minorities that looms behind the impending migration crisis confronting Europe.
