Trust in times of crisis: Public confidence and perceived efficiency in crisis management

Abstract

This thesis investigates the relationship between public trust in government and the operational efficiency of crisis management, with a particular focus on outcomes such as response speed, coordination, and public compliance. Drawing on Social Trust Theory and established crisis governance models, the study employs a quantitative cross-sectional design using survey data collected from 83 respondents in Norway—a high-trust democracy. The findings indicate that higher levels of institutional trust generally correlate with stronger perceptions of legitimacy and greater willingness to comply with emergency directives, although the observed relationships were modest. Regression analysis revealed no statistically significant predictors of perceived efficiency, likely due to limited sample size and a ceiling effect in trust levels. Nonetheless, correlation patterns support the theoretical expectation that trust functions as an enabling condition for coordinated crisis response. The study contributes to the literature by contextualizing trust in a high-trust setting and offering a conceptual framework that integrates trust as both an input and an outcome of crisis performance. Implications for crisis governance include treating trust as a strategic asset, emphasizing transparent communication, and embedding trust metrics into performance evaluation. These insights are particularly relevant as governments prepare for increasingly complex and trust-sensitive emergencies.