A key finding in the 2014 Trust Barometer published today by Edelman PR shows that, once again, public trust in governments around the world trails far behind trust in business.

Moreover, the ‘trust gap’ has increased markedly in the 2014 findings compared to 2013 – now a 14-point gap – and, indeed, overall compared to five years ago when the financial crisis was starting to bite.

While this gap illustrates a global average, where people’s trust in governments varies within each of the 27 countries in which Edelman conducted its research for the 2014 survey, it’s small comfort as the gap is driven by a decline of trust in government and not an increase in trust in business, Edelman says, with the gap at 20 points or greater in nearly half of the countries surveyed.

A few other highlights from the 2014 report’s findings:

• Business is now expected to play a much bigger role around the debate and design of regulation as 79 percent of those surveyed believe government should not be working alone when setting policy.
• A majority of respondents (84 percent) believe that business can pursue its self-interest while doing good work for society.
• There is call for more regulation in several industries including financial services (53 percent), energy (51 percent) and food and beverage (48 percent). Regionally, the study found that 66 percent want more regulation of the financial services industry in Germany, 73 percent of people in the UK want more regulation of the energy business, while in China, 84 percent desire stronger regulation of the food industry.
• Trust in CEOs has plateaued, and while they have recovered from a low of 31 percent in 2009 to 43 percent this year they still rank seventh out of eight, sitting only above government official (36 percent), as most credible spokesperson (and Edelman believes that CEOs must become “chief engagement officers” in order to educate the public about the economic, societal, political and environmental context in which their business operates).
• Academics (67 percent) and technical experts (66 percent), a “person like yourself” (62 percent) and employees (52 percent) continue to be far more trusted. CEOs can build trust in themselves and their companies by communicating clearly and transparently (82 percent), telling the truth regardless of how unpopular it is (81 percent) and engaging regularly with employees (80 percent).
• Globally, family-owned (71 percent) and small- and medium-sized businesses (68 percent) are more trusted than big business (61 percent).

• Companies headquartered in BRIC nations continue to suffer a trust deficit compared to western-based companies. Globally, respondents rated companies based in Germany, a market known for efficiency and productivity, highest (80 percent) followed closely by Sweden (79 percent) and Switzerland (79 percent), both of which are known to have strong policies aimed at protecting the environment and employees and communities. Companies based in Mexico (34 percent), India (35 percent) and China (36 percent) were trusted least and have seen no improvement over the past five years.
• Technology (79 percent) and automotive (70 percent) were once again the most trusted industry sectors, while banks (51 percent) were least trusted with dramatically low trust levels in Western Europe – Spain (16 percent), Italy (23 percent), UK (32 percent), Germany (33 percent) and France (38 percent).

This is the 14th annual report from Edelman that examines the state of trust in major economies. During the years, it has become a credible and trusted source of valuable insight into the intangible thing called “trust” that, increasingly, has tangible impact on business and government performance.

Note from the retrospect, above, the milestone findings in 2006, 2009 and 2012 – the effects of which we see markedly today.

One other finding in the 2014 report caught my attention – the power of search.

According to Edelman, there was a consistent answer to these questions:

When looking for general news and information, how much would you trust each type of source for general news and information?

On a typical day, what is the first source that you go to for general information about business?

What is the first source you go to for breaking news about business?

Which of the following sources do you turn to MOST often to confirm/ validate information on breaking news about business?

The answer? Not the mainstream (or social) media, but online search.

People clearly prefer their own “natural search” methods rather than the pre-packaged (and untrusted) alternatives.

Edelman will be formally launching the 2014 Trust Barometer during a presentation and meeting in London on Tuesday January 21, 2014, at 8:30am GMT. You can see it live.

• Shel and I will be discussing the 2014 Trust Barometer in this week’s episode 739 of The Hobson and Holtz Report podcast, recording today and publishing later today UK time.

Additional reading:

• Trust in Government Plunges to Historic Low – news release issued on January 19, 2014, announcing the 2014 Trust Barometer.
• 2014 Edelman Trust Barometer – Global Results – deck at Slideshare.
• 2014 Edelman Trust Barometer – commentary by Edelman CEO, Richard Edelman.