People with fewer resources seen as less trustworthy across cultures

New research in Social Psychological and Personality Science identifies a widespread stereotype linking wealth to perceived trustworthiness across diverse cultures. The research shows that individuals with fewer material resources are consistently viewed as less trustworthy.

The study, conducted across eight countries including Brazil, Colombia, Democratic Republic of Congo, India, France, Nigeria, Philippines, and the United Kingdom, employed a novel method to uncover stereotypes while avoiding social desirability bias.

What the researchers say: "People with fewer resources are consistently perceived to be less trustworthy by people around the world, even among individuals who have few resources themselves," the lead author told us.

This research highlights the importance of socioeconomic background in shaping stereotypes, alongside well-known demographic attributes such as gender, age, or race. It also emphasizes the need to consider both the characteristics of the person "doing the trusting" and the person being trusted when examining trust dynamics.

The implications of these findings are far-reaching. "By becoming aware of this stereotype, people may try to overcome this bias or put in place programs in their organization to counteract this," she explains, adding, "For people with low SES backgrounds, realizing that they may be perceived as less trustworthy could explain certain attitudes or behaviors towards them."

In the context of current world events, the research suggests that deepening social inequalities in Western countries could lead to decreased social trust as poverty rates increase. It may also shed light on patterns of discrimination against certain migrant groups.

The researchers caution against misinterpretation: "The main misrepresentation of these results would be to say that individuals with fewer resources are in fact less trustworthy rather than individuals with fewer resources are perceived to be less trustworthy. To date, there is no scientific evidence systematically showing that individuals with fewer resources are less trustworthy.”

One of the most striking aspects of the study is the universality of these stereotypes. "Often, we tend to think that highly capitalist countries or only Western countries have negative stereotypes towards certain groups," the authors note. "However, what we found in our study was that in all countries surveyed, including in places such as Goma (Democratic Republic of Congo), such stereotypes also exist."

So, what? This is an important study which reinforces other findings which show that as inequality increases (worldwide it is now .61 on the Gini coequivalent scale—see the p.s. in the last newsletter) so does fear and the distrust among groups leading to social unrest, wars and authoritarian governments.