Trust and happiness loop

An American Psychological Association study found the link runs both ways. The more you trust, the better you feel, and the better you feel, the more you trust.

Two and a half million people

The meta-analysis pooled close to 1,000 results from studies covering people aged 6 to 84, in countries including the United States, China and the United Kingdom.

It measures feeling, not income

Subjective well-being combines daily emotions with a considered verdict on your own life. It is separate from physical health or salary.

“Notre étude prend en compte à la fois les émotions, comme la fréquence des moments heureux ou tristes, et les jugements plus réfléchis”

Three kinds of trust

Researchers split it into interpersonal trust in people close to you, institutional trust in schools and courts, and generalised trust in society. All three tracked well-being.

“Que ce soit la confiance dans les autres, dans la société ou dans les institutions, toutes comptent pour se sentir bien”

The young and old gain most

Children raised in trusting families, schools and neighbourhoods build steadier emotional well-being. In older people, trust cuts isolation, anxiety and sadness.

“Nos résultats montrent que la confiance est particulièrement importante pour les enfants, les adolescents et les personnes âgées”

Trust cannot be ordered

It grows in conditions of fairness, transparency and consistency. Families, schools and governments all shape whether people can safely trust each other.

“Dans un monde où les médias peuvent autant relier que manipuler, protéger la confiance du public devient vital”