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Determinants of Confidence in U.S. Institutions: Comparing Congress and Corporations
Author(s) -
Bolger Daniel,
Thomson Robert,
Ecklund Elaine Howard
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
social science quarterly
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.482
H-Index - 90
eISSN - 1540-6237
pISSN - 0038-4941
DOI - 10.1111/ssqu.12921
Subject(s) - ideology , politics , survey data collection , presidential system , sociology , scholarship , ethnic group , political science , political economy , law , statistics , mathematics
Objectives The political discourse surrounding the 2016 U.S. presidential election highlighted discontent with both Congress and corporations, a reality corroborated in recent scholarship highlighting declines in institutional confidence among U.S. citizens. Here we test theories of institutional confidence to understand the social and cultural determinants of confidence in Congress and corporations prior to the start of the 2016 presidential campaigns. Methods We draw on data from the Religious Understandings of Science Survey, a nationally representative survey conducted in 2013–2014 ( N = 9,416). Results We find that political ideology largely explained confidence in corporations while social location (particularly racial‐ethnic identity and gender) strongly related to confidence in Congress. Seemingly opposing factors converged to predict trust in both institutions. Conclusions Institutional confidence is shaped not only by social and cultural factors but also by the symbolic functions of institutions themselves.