ABSTRACT
There is another assumption in Fukuyama’s analysis: the more trust there is in a society, the better. This may be so, but it should hardly be simply taken for granted (Gambetta, 1988:214). Accepting that too little trust of the right kinds can cause serious problems, it doesn’t necessarily follow that after a certain threshold, more trust is necessarily even better (Woolcock, 1998:158). Some degree of uncertainty about others’ expectations can sharpen our perceptions, leading to tensions rather than complacency. Even Japan, taken as an epitome of a high-trust society by Fukuyama, was able to mobilize this trust for continually transforming its economy partially as a result of a high level of distrust for outsiders, against whom Japan must continually improve its competitive position.
