Globalization effects or a growing cultural divide? a three-year comparative analysis of trust predictors in the US and China

Abstract

In order to affirm the importance of trust building in public relations research, this study explores the predictive role of demographics, political ideology, and related variables in building public trust in business, government, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). This work uses large-scale survey data from the top two countries based on GDP ranking: the United States (US) and China. The longitudinal comparison of the period 2011, 2012, and 2013 revealed both similar and dissimilar trust patterns between the two countries. NGO trust patterns became increasingly different over the three years analyzed, government trust patterns became increasingly similar, and business trust patterns remained relatively constant. The results of the aggregated regression analysis further identified the shifting predictive power of political ideology and the influence of several other factors on public trust in business, government, and NGOs. The implications of the findings for public relations theory and practice are discussed.

Keywords:

• Globalization
• trust
• China
• United States
• regression