"TRUST IN PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS AND COMPLIANCE WITH MEASURES AGAINST COVID-19 PANDEMIC. CASE STUDY ON METROPOLITAN AREA OF CLUJ, ROMANIA"

Bianca RADU

doi:10.24193/tras.63e.7

Abstract

The goal of this article is to analyze the level of citizens’ trust in different public institutions during the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic, and the influence of citizens’ trust on their compliance with the measures adopted to prevent the spread of the virus. The research was conducted between November and December 2020 on a sample of 700 residents of Metropolitan Area of Cluj, Romania. During the time of data collection, Romania registered the largest number of daily COVID-19 cases, therefore, citizens’ compliance with preventive measures was crucial to contain the spread of the virus. Citizens reported high levels of compliance with preventive measures. However, even though people were recommended to avoid meetings with relatives and friends, and participation to private events with large number of people, respondents reported that did not fully comply with social distancing requirements. Citizens have highest level of trust in the public institutions at local level, medical institutions and County Committees for Emergency Situations. The research found that trust in public institutions influences the compliance with preventive measures; however, the influence is weak and the trust in different institutions influences differently policy compliance.

Highlights

In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, trust was recognized as a crucial component of the strategies to combat the spread of the virus when little knowledge existed about the infectious disease
The research results show a moderate level of trust across all public institutions, with the highest level of trust being in institutions at local level, medical institutions and County Committees for Emergency Situations
We looked in more detail at how trust in public institutions varies depending on the socio-demographic characteristics of the respondents, such as gender, age, level of education, occupation and place of residence

Summary

Introduction

In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, trust was recognized as a crucial component of the strategies to combat the spread of the virus when little knowledge existed about the infectious disease. Citizens need to trust experts and public officials to help them respond to the pandemic. Public authorities need to trust citizens that they will comply with the mandatory restrictions in order to control the pandemic situation. Trust is a key topic that was researched extensively in many countries since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. In this context, the goal of this article is to analyze the level of trust in different public institutions in Romania and its influence on the compliance with anti-coronavirus measures adopted. In the first part of the article, we will analyze the findings of the latest research on public trust during the COVID-19 pandemic in different countries and we will draw conclusions on how trust influences policy compliance, as well as the factors that influence public trust during the crisis

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Conclusion