Political trust in the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic – A survey in Denmark and Sweden

Abstract

Abstract Background The two neighboring countries Denmark and Sweden differed markedly in their initial response to the coronavirus pandemic as Denmark rapidly introduced mandatory restrictions while Sweden's response was characterized by voluntary recommendations and an emphasis on personal responsibility. Both countries saw considerable discussion in media about whether restrictions were sufficient and appropriate. Aim To investigate the extent to which there was political trust in the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic in Denmark and Sweden and the characteristics of those in each country who expressed the lowest degree of trust. Methods Cross-sectional surveys were completed in Denmark (n = 2619) and Sweden (n = 2633) in 2021. Trust was captured in two questions: trust in how the government and the public health authority in each country had handled the pandemic. Those who expressed “very small trust” or “moderately small trust” were labelled “low-trusters”. The effects of demographic variables were analysed by logistic regression. Results Trust in the government's handling of the pandemic was considerably higher in Denmark than in Sweden. Approximately 61% of the Danish respondents expressed moderately or very large trust in the government's handling of the pandemic. The corresponding proportion for the Swedish respondents was smaller, 42%. Further, the proportion of low-trusters was considerably smaller in Denmark than in Sweden, 11% versus 34%. Also, males in both Denmark and Sweden were more than twice as likely as females to express low trust in the handling of the pandemic. Discussions Denmark and Sweden are similar in many ways, being universal welfare states, which have been associated with high political trust. Our findings suggest that the more active involvement of the Danish government in the battle against COVID-19 generated a high degree of public trust. The Swedish government's more passive role does not seem to have resulted in the same degree of trust. Key messages • Active involvement of authorities and governments seem to increase citizens’ trust. • The degree of trust in authorities and governments during a crisis differs among groups.