Vladimir Ninković TRANSCONFLICT

Tolerating the unexpected Dealing with uncertainties

One’s own inadequate knowledge and experience – recourse to the third party. Too big or complete tasks

Wrong, misleading information Trust erosion Gaps of knowledge Gaps of trust

Lubricating social interactions on various levels so these function smoothly Reducing social uncertainty and complexity Important element of social capital Prerequisite for a healthy and flexible economy and participatory democracy

Public institutions often in role of risk managers. Trust in public institutions important factor in the perception and acceptability of the risks. Trust – a key to successful risk communication

Trust : Expected future actions of third parties Reliability of information on which current actions are based No adequate communication / Withholding information distrust

Degree of willingness of the risk givers + Trustworthiness of the trust recipients = Perceived integrity and sincerity

A.Giddens: ‘Within an environment fraught with danger, all mechanisms of trust need to be complemented with tangible trust in persons’. Trust eases the pressure in the present / Distrust may paralyze all action Distrust compels the present to engage in a quest for reassuring knowledge and care. Distrust often may be rational course of action.

Trust Distrust – quick, abrupt process Distrust Trust – slow, gradual process Easier to destroy than to create – negative events carry more weight than the positive ones (“Bad news are good news”).

1. Building trust is always a hybrid process; there is no clear distinction between “abstract” trust in the system and “tangible” trust in persons. 2. Trust in abstract systems is not sufficiently grounded in personal or expert knowledge; rather it is based on symbolic indicators of trustworthiness. 3. Trust requires options for controls and enforcement.

4. Whether information is perceived as trustworthy or untrustworthy depends on its source. Science experts (doubts about their expertise and their integrity) Industry culprits (assumption of vested interests) Politicians (perceived as often incapable of action or biased). Confidence and trust of the stakeholders depend on the profit status; the more a particular agent stands to profit from a particular situation, the less trust will be given by the public. 4. The willingness to trust is dependent on the reporting by the media.

Earle & Cvetkovich: “People base their trust judgments on whether they feel that the other person or organization shares the same values, or is seen as having the same understanding of a specific situation.”

The public does not necessarily expect or see trust as an achievable goal in their relation with institutions The public has become more competent and knowledgeable enough to have “effective” distrust.

Acceptance (Trust) Critical Trust Distrust Rejection (Cynicism)

Caring and empathy Competence and expertise Honesty and openness Dedication and commitment 1. Technical competence 2. General trustworthiness dimension, encompassing care for the public interest

Refers to the objective and subjective components of the believability of a source or message Over 50% of credibility is dependent upon whether or not a source or message are perceived as empathetic and caring

Trust and credibility can be built by using support from credible third party sources. A lower credibility source takes on the credibility of the highest credible source that agrees with its position on an issue. When a lower credibility source attacks the credibility of a higher credibility source, the lower credibility source losses additional credibility.

1. Accept and involve the public as a partner. 2. Appreciate the public’s specific concerns. 3. Be honest and open. 4. Work with other credible sources. 5. Meet the needs of the media.

The more pronounced the uncertainty (gap of knowledge), the greater the need to establish a firm base for trust. The highest priority must be given to transparency, dialogue, participation and fairness. The best way to build public trust is by assuring that procedures truly involve the public in decision making.