2. Informed Public
⣠9 years in 20+ markets
⣠Represents 15% of total population
⣠500 respondents in U.S. and China; 200 in all other countries
Must meet 4 criteria:
⣠Ages 25-64
⣠College-educated
⣠In top 25% of household income per age group in each market
⣠Report significant media consumption and engagement in business news
General Online Population
⣠5 years in 25+ markets
⣠Ages 18+
⣠1,150 respondents per country
Methodology
28-country/area global data margin of error: General Population +/-0.6% (N=32,200), Informed Public +/- 1.2% (N=6,200), Mass Population +/- 0.6% (26,000).
Country-specific data margin of error: General Population +/- 2.9 ( N=1,150), Informed Public +/- 6.9% (N = min 200, varies by country), China and U.S. +/- 4.4%
(N=500), Mass Population +/- 3.0 to 3.6 (N =min 740, varies by country), half sample Global General Online Population +/- 0.8 (N=16,100).
⣠16 years of data
⣠33,000+ respondents total
⣠All fieldwork was conducted
between October 13th -
November 16th, 2015
Online Survey in 28 Countries
Mass Population
⣠All population not including Informed Public
⣠Represents 85% of total population
2
4. 49 Ireland
47 Turkey
46 Sweden
42 Poland
42 Russia
41 Japan
49 Australia
49 Italy
49 U.S.
47 Hong Kong
46 Spain
45 S. Africa
42 Germany
42 S. Korea
42 U.K.
41 France
41 Ireland
41 Turkey
39 Russia
38 Japan
37 Sweden
35 Poland
73 China
66 UAE
65 India
64 Singapore
62 Indonesia
60 Mexico
82 China
78 India
74 UAE
72 Mexico
72 Singapore
70 Indonesia
64 U.S.
63 Australia
63 Canada
62 Netherlands
61 Colombia
56 Canada
55 Colombia
52 Netherlands
51 Argentina
51 Malaysia
50 Brazil58 Brazil
58 Italy
58 Malaysia
57 U.K.
55 France
54 S. Africa
53 Argentina
53 Spain
52 Hong Kong
51 Germany
50 S. Korea
Trust Index:
General Population
Lags
Average trust in institutions,
Informed Public vs.
General Population, 2016
Nearly 6 in 10
countries are
distrusters among the
General Population
The Trust Index is an average of a countryâs trust in
the institutions of government,business,media and
NGOs. 28-country/area global total.
Informed
Public
General
Population
60 Global 50 Global
4
Trusters
Neutrals
Distrusters
5. 51
48
45
41
55 53
47
42
63
57
51
48
67 63
57
51
Trust Rising
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer Q11-14. Below is a list of institutions. For each one, please indicate how much you trust that institution to do what is right
using a nine-point scale, where one means that you âdo not trust them at allâ and nine means that you âtrust them a great deal.â (Top 4 Box, Trust) Informed Public
and General Population, 27-country/area global total.
5
Percent trust in the four institutions of
government, business, media and NGOs, 2015 vs. 2016
NGOs Business Media Government
+4 +6 +6 +3
Informed
Public
General
Population +4 +5 +2 +1
2015 2016
6. 54 58
64
7571 70 73
79
72 70
77
8283 80 81
86
Trust Rising
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer Q11-14. Below is a list of institutions. For each one, please indicate how much you trust that institution to do what is right
using a nine-point scale, where one means that you âdo not trust them at allâ and nine means that you âtrust them a great deal.â (Top 4 Box, Trust) Informed Public
and General Population, China.
6
Percent trust in the four institutions of
government, business, media and NGOs, 2015 vs. 2016
Informed
Public
General
Population
NGOs Business Media Government
+11 +10 +4 +4
+17 +12 +9 +4
2015 2016
7. 76
80
79
75
82
68
69
65
61
71
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
A Significant Divide
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer Q11-14. Below is a list of institutions. For each one, please indicate how much you trust that institution to do what is right
using a nine-point scale, where one means that you âdo not trust them at allâ and nine means that you âtrust them a great deal.â (Top 4 Box, Trust) Informed Public
and Mass Population, China.
7
Percent trust in the four institutions of
government, business, media and NGOs, 2012 to 2016 Informed
Public
Mass
Population
11pt
Gap
8pt
Gap
8. Trust Index 2012 â 2016, percentage point change in the size of
the trust gap between Informed Public and Mass Population
An Accelerating Disparity
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer Q11-14. Below is a list of institutions. For each one, please indicate how much you trust that institution to do what is right
using a nine-point scale where one means that you âdo not trust them at allâ and nine means that you âtrust them a great deal.â (Top 4 Box, Trust) Informed Public
and Mass Population, 25-country/area global total, 2012 vs 2016.
GDP 5 = U.S., China, Japan, Germany, U.K.
8
Increased Gap Decreased Gap
Gap has increased in 16 of 25 countries
Global25
GDP5
France
U.K
U.S.
Spain
Mexico
Singapore
S.Korea
Malaysia
India
China
Brazil
Germany
Australia
Ireland
Russia
Poland
Canada
Japan
Indonesia
Italy
Argentina
UAE
HongKong
Netherlands
2012 Gap 9 7 4 7 11 1 8 6 6 4 13 8 7 6 14 8 2 7 8 3 10 13 6 13 10 14 15
2016 Gap 12 12 16 17 19 9 15 10 10 8 16 11 10 9 16 10 3 8 8 3 8 11 3 9 6 10 10
Sweden
3
5
12
10
8 8
7
4 4 4
3 3 3 3
2 2
1 1
0 0
-2 -2
-3
-4 -4 -4
-5
10. 40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
Sector Trends:
Consumer Categories Rebound
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer Q45-429. Please indicate how much you trust businesses in each of the following industries to do what is right. Again, please use the same 9-point scale where one
means that you âdo not trust them at allâ and nine means that you âtrust them a great dealâ. (Top 4 Box, Trust) General Population, China.
*From 2012-2014, Pharma included as subsector(Q61f-65f).
**From 2012-2015, Pharma included as an industry sector (Q43-60). 2012-2014 data recalibrated as a sector.
Trust in each industry sector, 2012 - 2016
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
`
Industry 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
5 yr.
Trend
Technology 88% 88% 87% 84% 90% 2
Automotive 77% 82% 84% 78% 82% 5
Energy 74% 80% 78% 74% 82% 8
Consumer Packaged Goods 68% 76% 76% 72% 79% 11
Financial Service 72% 74% 76% 72% 76% 4
Telecommunications 72% 73% 76% 70% 76% 4
Pharmaceutical 56% 66% 66% 63% 71% 15
Food & Beverage 54% 60% 64% 62% 70% 16
General
Population
10
11. Family Business in China: Big Trust Gap to Close
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer Q15-17C. Thinking about different types of businesses, please indicate how much you trust each type of business to do
what is right using a nine-point scale, where one means that you âdo not trust them at allâ and nine means that you âtrust them a great deal.â (Top 4 Box, Trust)
General Population, 28-country global total.
11
Trust in different types of business
52%
66%
46%
Global
59%
54%52%
Asia Pacific
41%
72%
41%
Europe
52%
80%
47%
North America
57%
76%
40%
Latin America
Big Companies
Family-owned
State-owned
General
Population
79%
59%
73%
China
12. 66 66 66
64
62 62
60 59
56
54
47
45
42
33
31 30 29
Canada
Sweden
Switzerland
Germany
Australia
U.K.
Japan
Netherlands
U.S.
France
Italy
Spain
SouthKorea
China
Brazil
India
Mexico
Developed Markets More Trusted
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer Q26-Q422. Now we would like to focus on global companies headquartered in specific countries. Please indicate how
much you trust global companies headquartered in the following countries to do what is right. Use the same nine-point scale, where one means that you âdo not
trust them at allâ and nine means that you âtrust them a great deal.â (Top 4 Box, Trust) General Population, 25-country/area global total.
12
Trust in companies headquartered in each country, and percentage
point change, 2012 vs. 2016
+6 -2 +6 +8 -2+1+1n/a+1+4+5+3 +2 +2 +1 0 +3
4 Year
Trend
General
Population
13. Business Must Lead to Solve Problems
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer Q249. Please indicate how much you agree or disagree with the following statement? (Top 4 Box, Agree). General
Population, China, question asked of half the sample.
87% agree
âA company can take
specific actions that both
increase profits and improve
the economic and social
conditions in the community
where it operates.â
up from 78% in 2015
General
Population
13
14. Access to education/training
Address income inequality
Access to healthcare
Protecting/improving the environment
Reducing poverty
Access to food/water/housing
Supporting human & civil rights
Modern infrastructure
E
E
P
H
F
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer Q561-573 Thinking about businesses in your country, how important is it that they play a role in solving each of the following societal issues?
Please use a 9-point scale where one means that it is ânot at all importantâ and nine means that it is âextremely importantâ. (Top 4 Box, Importance) General Population, 28-country/area
global total, question asked of one quarter the sample.
Societal
Expectations
Vary
14
Most important issue for
business to address in
each country/area
Canada
Brazil
Germany
France
China
U.S.
Poland
Argentina
Sweden
Mexico
U.K.
Ireland
Netherlands
Turkey
Singapore
Hong Kong
Malaysia
Colombia
Japan
Australia
Russia
S. Korea
Italy
Spain
Indonesia
U.A.E.
South Africa
India
General
Population
R
I
I
E
E
R
H
E
E
E
E
E
P
P
E
H
P
E
H
H
H
E
E
E
E
E
P
I
H
E
I
15. Integrity 51% 30% 21
Engagement 49% 30% 19
Products 47% 33% 14
Purpose 44% 29% 15
Operations 42% 29% 13
Companies seen as underperforming
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust
Barometer Q80-95 How important is
each of the following attributes to
building your TRUST in a company?
Use a 9-point scale where one means
that attribute is ânot at all important to
building your trustâ and nine means it
is âextremely important to building
your trustâ in a company. (Top 2 Box,
Importance) Q114-129 Please rate
businesses in general on how well
you think they are performing on each
of the following attributes. Use a 9-
point scale where one means they are
"performing extremely poorly" and
nine means they are "performing
extremely well". (Top 2 Box,
Performance) General Population,
China.
Company Importance vs. Performance
%
Importance
%
Performance Gap
General
Population
15
16. Integrity 51% 30% 21
Has Ethical Business Practices 54% 30% 24
Takes Responsible Actions To Address An Issue Or A Crisis 50% 32% 18
Has Transparent And Open Business Practices 48% 28% 20
Engagement 49% 30% 19
Treats Employees Well 49% 32% 17
Listens To Customer Needs And Feedback 51% 32% 19
Places Customers Ahead Of Profits 50% 29% 21
Communicates Frequently And Honestly On The State Of Its Business 47% 29% 18
Products 47% 33% 14
Offers High Quality Products Or Services 55% 34% 21
Is An Innovator Of New Products, Services Or Ideas 40% 32% 8
Purpose 44% 29% 15
Works To Protect And Improve The Environment 50% 28% 22
Creates Programs That Positively Impact The Local Community 44% 30% 14
Addresses Society's Needs In Its Everyday Business 44% 31% 13
Partners With NGOs, Government And Third Parties To Address Societal Issues 37% 28% 9
Operations 42% 29% 13
Has Highly-Regarded And Widely Admired Top Leadership 41% 28% 13
Ranks On A Global List Of Top Companies, Such As Best To Work For Or Most Admired 42% 29% 13
Delivers Consistent Financial Returns To Investors 42% 29% 13
Companies seen as underperforming
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust
Barometer Q80-95 How important is
each of the following attributes to
building your TRUST in a company?
Use a 9-point scale where one means
that attribute is ânot at all important to
building your trustâ and nine means it
is âextremely important to building
your trustâ in a company. (Top 2 Box,
Importance) Q114-129 Please rate
businesses in general on how well
you think they are performing on each
of the following attributes. Use a 9-
point scale where one means they are
"performing extremely poorly" and
nine means they are "performing
extremely well". (Top 2 Box,
Performance) General Population,
China.
Company Importance vs. Performance
%
Importance
%
Performance Gap
General
Population
16
20. CEO Focus Misplaced
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer Q451-461. Thinking about CEOs, how strongly do you agree or disagree with the following statements? [âCEOs do too much lobbying,â âGiven that the
average tenure of CEOs is just 4 years, CEOs arenât in their role long enough to make a positive impact,â (Top 4 Box, Agree) âCEOs are too focused on short-term financial results,â âCEOs can
be trust to create jobsâ] (Bot 5 Box, Do not agree) General Population, China.
20
Percent who agree with each statement about CEOs
Focus on short-
term financial
results
Government
relations
Too Much
74%
74%
Not Enough
Deliver high
quality products
and services
87%
Positive
long-term impact
71%
General
Population
21. Purpose and Profits Matter
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer Q496-506. How visible do you think a CEO should personally be in these different types of business situations? Please
use a 9-point scale where one means that it is ânot visible at allâ and nine means that it is âextremely visibleâ. (Top 4 Box, Visible) General Population, China,
question asked of half the sample.
21
Percent who agree that CEOs should be personally visible in discussingâŠ
85%
Societal
Issues
⣠Income inequality
⣠Public policy discussions
⣠Personal views on
societal issues
81%
Financial
Results
General
Population
23. 80%
85%
88%88%
Their education and
how it shaped them
Their personal
success story
The obstacles
they have overcome
Their personal values
Personal Values and History Matter
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer Q507-514. Thinking about how a CEO communicates with a variety of groups and individuals, how important are each of the following activities a CEO could engage in?
Please use a 9-point scale where one means that attribute is ânot at all important to building your trustâ and nine means it is âextremely important to building your trustâ. (Top 4 Box, Important) General Population, 28-
country global total, question asked of half the sample. [Media Engagement net = Q507 âInterviews with the media,â and âQ512 âSharing their views on a blog or on social media.â Direct Engagement net = Q508
âCommunications with employees,â and âParticipation in industry conferences.â] Q516-524. For you to trust a CEO, how important is it that you have information on each of the following aspects of the CEOâs personal
life outside of their business? Please use a 9-point scale where one means that attribute is ânot at all important to building your trustâ and nine means it is âextremely important to building your trust. (Top 4 Box,
Important) General Population, China, question asked of half the sample.
Percent who agree that each type of information
is important in building trust in a CEO
General
Population
23
24. Desired Leadership Qualities
Characteristics that make a CEO trustworthy, percent who
selected each as one of the top 5 in China
24
General
Population
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer Q515. Which of the following personal characteristics make a CEO trustworthy? Please select the 5 most important
characteristics that make a CEO trustworthy. General Population, 28-country global total, question asked of half the sample.
* Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer CEO Supplement Q1. Thinking about company CEOs in general, how many CEOs could you name in full? General
Population, 10-country global total.
40
35
30
27
26
Visionary
Innovative
Decisive
Experienced
Authentic
26. Company NOT
engaged in
societal issues
Company
engaged in
societal issues
Employee Advocacy Increases
With Societal Issue Engagement
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer Q527-529. Does your company and your companyâs CEO get involved in addressing broader societal issues beyond the
core business, through programs or relationships with other companies? Q530-536. Thinking about your current company, please indicate how much you agree
with each of the following statements using a 9-point scale where one means that you âstrongly disagreeâ and nine means that you âstrongly agreeâ. (Top 4 Box,
Agree) General Population, China, question asked of half the sample. 26
Percent who agree with each statement, comparing those who work at
companies/for CEOs involved in addressing broader societal issues vs.
those who do not
62
65
67
68
67
77
86
Recommend company as an employer
Stay working for the company
Confidence in the future of the company
Motivated to perform
Recommend products and services to
others
Committed to achieving our strategy
Do the best possible job for the customer
Impact of
Company
Engagement
8
14
24
22
22
24
23
94
91
91
90
89
89
85
General
Population
28. 59 58
49
43
52
45
39 38
40
69
66
60
57 57
54
46 45 44
CEOs Receive Largest Increase as Most Credible
Spokesperson
Source: 2016 Edelman. Trust Barometer Q130-587. Below is a list of people. In general, when forming an opinion of a company, if you heard information about a
company from each person, how credible would the information beâextremely credible, very credible, somewhat credible, or not credible at all? (Top 2 Box,
Very/Extremely Credible) General Population, China, question asked of half the sample.
28
Percent who rate each spokesperson as extremely/very credible
2015 2016
+14
Technical
Expert
Academic
Expert
A person
like
yourself
Financial
Industry
Analyst
EmployeeCEO NGO
representative
Board of
Directors
Government
official/regul
ator
General
Population
29. 77 78
75 70
76
73 73
70
60
72
69
67 68
60
69
75 75
76
69
75
64
58
56
52
64
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016
Integrated Media Landscape
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer Q178-182. When looking for general news and information, how much would you trust each type of source for general
news and information? Please use a nine-point scale where one means that you âdo not trust it at allâ and nine means that you âtrust it a great deal.â (Top 4 Box,
Trust) General Population and Millennials, China, question asked of half the sample.
Trust in each source for general news and information
*From 2012-2015, we included Online Search Engines as a media type. In 2016, we changed to Search Engines.
**From 2012-2015, we included Hybrid as a media type. In 2016, we changed this over to Online-Only.
Millennials
even more trusting
of digital media than
general population
Industry Millenials Gap
Traditional Media 76% 0
Search Engines* 79% 4
Online-only Media** 75% 3
Social media 75% 6
Owned media 69% 5
General
Population
30. 72
70
68
50
42
41
Social
TV
Search
Newspapers
Magazines
Blogs
Power of Peer-Driven Media
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer - How often do you read, view, click on or engage with the following types of content, media or information sources? Online
search engines, such as Google⊠(Q285), Television news and information (Q287), Social networking sites, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Twitter,
etc.(Net of Q278 Social Networking, Q279 Blogs, Q289 Online message boards, forums or newsgroups), articles in printed newspapers (Q284), articles in printed
magazines(Q283), Blogs (Q279) (Several times a week+) General Population, China, question asked of half the sample. 30
Percent who use each media source several times a week or more
General
Population
2 of top 3 most-used
sources of news and
information are peer-
influenced media
32. 79
67
61
57
46
41
58
49
47
29
31
24
Trust Matters
Source: 2016 Edelman Trust Barometer Q371-589. Thinking back over the past 12 months, have you taken any of the following actions in relation to companies
that you trust? Please answer yes or no to each action. General Population, China, question asked of half the sample. Q377-380. Still thinking about the past 12
months, have you taken any of the following actions in relation to companies that you do not trust? Please answer yes or no to each action. General Population,
China, question asked of half the sample. 32
Percent who engage in each behavior based on trust
Behaviors for Distrusted Companies Behaviors for Trusted Companies
Refused to buy products/services
Criticized companies
Shared negative opinions
Paid more than wanted
Sold shares
Disagreed with
others
Chose to buy products/services
Recommended them to a friend/colleague
Shared positive opinions online
Paid more
Boughtshares
Defended company
General
Population
33. Influence
The Inversion of
Influence
33
Influence
& Authority
Authority
Old Model
⣠Elites have access
to more/better
information
⣠Elitesâ interests
interconnected with
those of mass
⣠Becoming an âeliteâ
open to all
New Reality
⣠Peer-to-peer influence
more powerful than top-
down
⣠Increasing distrust
among mass population
⣠Mass movements based
on dissatisfaction and
urgency
The Divide
⣠Democratization of
information and more
information
⣠High-profile revelations
of greed and
misbehavior
⣠Income inequality
34. Embracing the New Reality
of Influence to
Build Trust Through Creditable
Influences
34
⣠Create societal impact in addition to profits through
purposeful action
⣠Express your values through honest, ethical
engagement in which you share your story
⣠Ignite your most powerful advocate, your employees
⣠Engage cross channel to meet stakeholders, where
they are, about what most interests/concerns them
Actions
Values
Employee
Advocacy
Engagement
Influence
AuthorityLeadership
TRUST