Trust and Corruption Perceptions in Russia

The fourth day of the 6th LCSR International Workshop started with the key lecture of the prominent LCSR expert- Professor Eric Uslaner. His lecture “Trust and Corruption Perceptions in Russia” covered the issue of generalized trust in Russia and its influence on the attitude of Russia’s population towards corruption.

The fourth day of the 6th LCSR International Workshop started with the key lecture of the prominent LCSR expert- Professor Eric Uslaner. His lecture “Trust and Corruption Perceptions in Russia” covered the issue of generalized trust in Russia and its influence on the attitude of Russia’s population towards corruption.

The “inequality trap” does not work in Russia

In his study, Professor Uslaner conceptualized the term “generalized trust” or “trust in strangers” as generally inherited trust from parents which does not change considerably throughout human life. This kind of trust is opposite to “particularized trust” (trust in members of one’s own social group) and “strategic trust” which is based upon the experience with specific people. Professor Uslaner’s previous results indicate that the main factor for the level of generalized trust in society is economic inequality. High inequality results in the situation when people do not trust strangers but still continue to have high level of particularized trust which eventually leads to “clientilism” and the development of corruption. This concept is called the “inequality trap.”

Nevertheless, Prof. Uslaner discovered that this model does not reflect the Russian reality. Inequality and change in inequality do not correlate with trust and confidence between Russians. Despite the fact that more than 50 percent of people accept the possibility of corruption eradication, approximately 60 percent agree that all state institutions are bribable, especially the police, courts, parliament, and local authorities. Although the majority of Russians believe that both Vladimir Putin and the government are corrupt, the rate of approval of all government’s decisions is strikingly high: 63 percent of respondents argue that they trust the Moscow government. The support for the incumbent Russian President is even more remarkable, namely 78 percent, and, according to the survey, it does not depend on the current economic situation.

Professor Uslaner also stressed that an average Russian does not have an extensive “trust network” and religion has a negative impact on the level of trust in strangers. Another interesting finding is that those who lived abroad and get acquainted with foreign cultures are generally more trustful. The same is true for the older generation. Moreover, older people tend to think that more severe corruption problems have appeared since the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Russian citizens with inadequate income tend to criticize more the increased contemporary corruption levels than those in the Soviet era.

Professor Uslaner’s study showed the different perceptions of grand and petty corruption in Russia. While the spread of grand corruption is quite disquieting, small-scale bribes are perceived as acceptable and unavoidable in certain cases.

Professor Eric Uslaner concluded that Russians acknowledge widespread corruption. However, there is a modest evidence that they link such views to either trust or inequality. For the great majority of Russians, there is less coherence in their views of corruption. At least in this realm, Russia remains, in the words of Winston Churchill “a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma".

Author of the news: Anastasiya Koval, Ivan Aimaliev
Laboratory for Comparative Social Research