'TRUSTING THE OTHER: GENERALIZED TRUST IN DIVIDED SOCIETIES'

In this thesis I aim to examine the influence of institutional conditions on the level of generalized trust in divided societies. I argue through this thesis that institutions in divided societies are an important source of social trust in the long term and can easily destroy the level of social trust in societies if designed ineffectively and prove to be unfair and unequal. In general, the findings suggest that equal and fair public institutions are crucial to the social mechanism of trust. In this thesis I relied on a mixed methods approach based on qualitative and quantitative methods. Qualitative Comparative Analysis (QCA) was used to answer the question of: to what the extent do institutional conditions have an effect on trust, using eight case studies. Regression analysis, backed with the case-study analysis was used to offer in-depth analysis of the case of Lebanon. This thesis provides empirical evidence that institutions have a substantial impact on the level of trust between strangers within a divided society. In this research I have developed a conceptual framework from several relevant bodies of literature, mainly theories of social capital and generalized trust, that have been used as basis for the analysis. The QCA analysis shows that fair institutions with an effective and independent judicial and legal system, and an efficient non-sectarian civil society can maintain the level of generalized trust in divided societies and may contribute to more trust in the society. The QCA also shows that the absence of equality and fairness in formal institutions and the absence of public deliberation and consultation, including civil society, have a greater negative impact on generalized trust in divided societies. I conclude that institutions in divided societies play an important role in maintaining and even building social trust in the long run, but they can also be detrimental to the level of social trust in societies if designed ineffectively and prove to be unfair and unequal. The findings suggest that equal and fair public institutions are crucial to the social mechanism of trust.