Trust, Hope & Democratic Governance Projects

This work draws on a series of surveys of the Australian population that commenced in 2000 and on a special issue on 'Hope, Power and Governance' that brought together contributors from different disciplines and research data from different continents. The special issue is published in the Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 592, 2004.
 

In 2000, 2002 and 2005, three surveys were conducted on taxation and governance. These surveys established the connections that the community make between quality of governance and the taxes they pay (Braithwaite, 2009a; Braithwaite, Reinhart, Mearns & Graham, 2000; Braithwaite & Reinhart, 2005a; Braithwaite & Reinhart, 2005b).
 

In 2000, 'The Community Participation and Citizenship Survey' was conducted to better understand how people developed a sense of obligation to be a good citizen and to pay tax. Trust in family, work mates, neighbours, local institutions and government institutions all were implicated in the development of a sense of obligation to others and to the community as a whole (Job, 2004, 2007).
 

In 2003, a survey of Australians was conducted to better understand people's hopes and the degree to which such hopes were fuelled or restricted by their economic well-being. These data showed how grievance and competitiveness undermined trust and cooperation in government and was associated with distancing from socially shared moral standards. Illegitimate means were acceptable for achieving legitimate social goals (Braithwaite, 2009b).
 

In 2005, a survey was conducted of what Australian thought of their democracy and its future. 87% of Australians are disillusioned with their democracy. The question is why. Too often people see few benefits associated with government activity, they question the justice and fairness of implementation and outcomes, and they do not always feel a moral obligation to comply with government expectations. Within a democracy, not everyone can be a winner every time, but people need to know that they have been listened to and their positions considered. Our work on 'the wheel of social alignments' sets out to define the issues that need to be central to any conversation between the people and their government, employer or authority of any kind - honest, inclusive and contestable conversations about benefits, justice and fairness, and obligation (Braithwaite, 2009b).

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