The Decline of Trust in Post-communist Societies: The Case of Bulgaria and Russia
The Decline of Trust in Post-communist Societies: The Case of Bulgaria and Russia

Summary/Abstract: After the fall of communism in Bulgaria and Russia, the form of underground communities still remained in the collective consciousness, as people became even more secluded around their tight circles of family and friends. The family bonds became the new cradle of trust that might have resulted in the low levels of bridging and out-group trust. Trust towards government institutions and formal organisations have dramatically declined in accord with the decline in social and political participation. From observations of the Bulgarian society from 2000 to present, I propose that informal personal contacts on the micro-level rather than formal institutional participation on the macro-level tend to generate social trust and thus hamper institutional legitimacy. The family substitutes the role of the institution as it provides for value priorities and moral resources for one’s realisation. Contrary to the Tocqueville and Putnam model, I propose that in Bulgaria and Russia such interpersonal relations generate trust and intermediary organisations do not. Furthermore, the paper will study: 1) the levels of trust in comparison to the levels of social participation, 2) the level of economic development and 3) the development of the family structure as an influential factor of trust and social/political participation. The study will focus on the social development of post-communist Bulgaria and Russia (from 1999 to present), with the Chinese and Dutch societal model as comparison.

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