The Jewish People Policy Institute's Israeli Society Index reveals a dramatic gap within Israeli society: While 571% of Jews in Israel tend to trust most people, only 201% of Arabs in Israel think so.
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The importance of the level of trust in other people stems from the correlation between the level of trust in people and economic prosperity, the level of personal happiness, and the healthy functioning of a society.
In general, people who trust most people report higher satisfaction with their lives, health, and family life.
In recent decades, the world has seen a decline in the percentage of people who trust other people. For example, in the US, the percentage of people who agree that "most people can be trusted" has dropped from 47% in 1973 to 34% today.
In studies published in the US, it is possible to identify a connection between the level of trust and the level of income and education. Those who earn less, those who are less educated, trust people less.
The JPPI index for Israeli society examined the situation in Israel in this context.
The index findings show that Israel ranks high relative to the rest of the world: almost half of Israelis (49%) say that "most people can be trusted."
However, there is a very large gap in the response to this question between Jews and Arabs in Israel: while the majority of Jews tend to trust most people (57%), only a small minority – 20% – of Arabs in Israel report that they trust most people.
There are only 11 countries in the world where the majority of the public believes that most people can be trusted. Denmark leads the list with 74%, Norway with 72% is in second place, and Finland with 68% is in third place. They are followed by the Chinese and Swedes (63%), Icelanders (62%), and the Swiss (59%). In the Netherlands and New Zealand, 57% of the population report that they trust other people. In Austria, 50% responded this way, and in Australia, 49% responded this way, as in Israel (the weighted figure).
But if we examine the data concerning Jews only, it appears that 571% of Jews in Israel trust others, meaning that Jews in Israel are in a similar position to the Netherlands and New Zealand, and slightly behind Switzerland.
In a more in-depth examination of trust in relationships with the immediate environment, the index found that Israelis trust Israelis (57%) more than people in general (49%).
This picture changes slightly when the Israelis' reference shifts from Israelis in general, to "Jews in Israel" (59%), as opposed to "Arabs in Israel" (24%).
Examining Jews and Arabs separately, it appears that most Jews trust Jews in Israel (68%) even more than they trust Israelis in general (66%).
Most Jews do not trust Arabs in Israel (only 22% responded that they trust Arabs). Among Arabs, the tendency to trust other people is low across all options (only 22% trust Israelis, only 24% trust Jews).
Even when it comes to the possibility of Arabs trusting Israeli Arabs – only a third of Arabs in Israel (32%) say that most Arabs in Israel can be trusted.
When examining the level of trust Jews have in Arabs, significant gaps are evident, as expected, according to ideological camp (and almost completely consistent with religiosity), with leftists trusting Arabs much more than rightists (501% of Jews identified with the left, 481% of Jews identified with the center-left, and 301% of Jews identified with the center responded that most Arabs in Israel can be trusted; in contrast, 831% of Jews identified with the right, 691% of Jews identified with the center-right, and 421% of Jews identified with the center responded that most Arabs in Israel cannot be trusted).
The question of trust in people was also examined this month by the JPPI People's Voice Index among Jews in the United States:
44% of survey participants said that most people can be trusted. This level of trust is significantly lower than that of Jews in Israel (57%), but somewhat higher than the attitudes of all Americans (37%).
The index reveals an interesting phenomenon in international comparison: American Jews trust American Jews by a large majority of 70%, compared to 44% among all people.
American Jews also express high trust in Israeli Jews and feel that they can be trusted (69%) – and this is a higher level than the trust of Israeli Jews themselves in Israeli Jews (68%).
In almost the same way, American Jews' trust in Israelis in general (68%) is also higher than Israeli Jews' trust in Israelis in general (66%).
Among American Jews, it has also been found that as one progresses on the ideological ladder from the liberal to the conservative direction, the tendency to trust Israeli Jews increases.
President of the Jewish People Policy Institute (JPPI), Prof. Yedidiya Stern, commented on the findings:
"Interpersonal trust is the silent glue that holds a healthy and solidary society together, and helps build an economy, public service, security, health, law enforcement, and more. It turns out that despite the intensifying disagreement between communities in Israel, which amounts to a culture war, and despite the feeling that "the whole world is against us" in relations between us and other nations, Israelis believe in people wherever they are.
Arab citizens of Israel differ from Jews in the trust index, and this is a fact that requires thought and responsibility from all of us.
Meanwhile, it is encouraging to hear that American Jews express a high level of trust in Israeli Jews – even more than Israeli Jews themselves – and this is further evidence of a worldwide Jewish partnership.
We must foster trust not only between groups within Israel, but also between ourselves and Jewish communities around the world."
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