Social trust and the advanced aspects of social progress. Evidence for the European regions

Jesús Peiró-Palomino, Lisa Gianmoena, Andres Picazo-Tadeo and Vicente Rios

European Journal of Political Economy, 2024, vol. 83, issue C

Abstract: Social trust is a deeply-rooted feature of society, whose positive impact on economic performance has been widely documented in many contexts. However, its impact on the non-economic aspects of social progress that characterize advanced societies, such as personal rights, freedom, tolerance and inclusion and access to advanced education is still understudied, especially at the subnational level. As shown by the European Social Progress Index (EU-SPI) 2020, elaborated by the European Commission, the European regions present remarkable disparities in those non-economic aspects. Using the EU-SPI framework, this paper provides fresh evidence on a positive impact of social trust on several features defining advanced social progress. Social trust effects are mainly seen in improved quality of government, education and people’s pro-social behaviors. These insights can be useful for the design of future policies that pursue a more equal Europe beyond purely economic indicators, given that regional social trust can condition their success.

Keywords: European regions; European social progress index; Social trust (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I31 R11 Z10 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:poleco:v:83:y:2024:i:c:s0176268024000491

DOI: 10.1016/j.ejpoleco.2024.102547

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