RTL/ntv trend barometer
Trust in institutions continues to fall
01/17/2023 3:19 p.m
Germans trust social institutions such as the media, the army and the police less and less. In the East, trust in social institutions is still significantly lower, especially with regard to the press, radio and the Federal Constitutional Court.
As with political institutions, the trust of German citizens in most social institutions at the turn of the year 2022/23 was lower than in the previous year.
Trust in only two social institutions has remained unchanged: the police and the courts in general. Trust in the Federal Constitutional Court and in the opinion research institutes fell by 3 percentage points each.
Confidence in universities and in the medium of television has each fallen by 5 percentage points, and in doctors and radio by 6 percentage points. Trust in the press has fallen by 7 percentage points. The greatest loss of trust was in the Bundeswehr after the discussions about their equipment and operational capability with 8 percentage points.
As in previous years, at the end of the crisis year 2022, doctors, the police and the universities remain the social institutions in which German citizens have the greatest trust.
At the turn of the year 2022/23, there were still very clear differences in the degree of trust between East and West Germans. The difference is particularly large in the press and radio as well as in the Federal Constitutional Court and the police. While 52 percent of West Germans trust the radio and 41 percent trust the press, this figure is only 36 and 25 percent among East Germans. 69 percent of East Germans trust the police, compared to 81 percent in the West.
The data was collected by the market and opinion research institute Forsa on behalf of RTL Germany from December 15 to 22, 2022. Database: 4003 respondents.
More information about Forsa here.
Forsa surveys commissioned by RTL Germany