Public Confidence in Government: Trust and Responsiveness

Abstract

To examine public confidence in government, researchers at the Harry S Truman School of Public Affairs at the University of Missouri have recently completed a national survey of 1,000 adults on these issues. The survey asked respondents about their general trust in government, their trust in local, state, and federal governments specifically, and their feelings on different levels of government's responsiveness to public opinion. The survey was administered as part of the 2007 Cooperative Congressional Election Study (CCES), a 10,000 person survey conducted through the collaborative efforts of a consortium of universities. The 2007 CCES was administered in November 2007 by Polimetrix, an internet survey firm located in Palo Alto, California.