Our confidence in the major institutions that represent us and make our lives work is critical to a functional democratic society. The erosion of trust in these institutions can create challenges in public problem solving and have significant impacts on broader engagement in civic and democratic life.
This metric compiles the average confidence levels of Americans in 14 major institutions, including military, police, church or organized religion, medical system, presidency, U.S. Supreme Court, public schools, banks, organized labor, criminal justice system, television news, newspapers, big business, and Congress. Some institutions have seen significant changes in confidence levels over the years, while others remain more stable.
Confidence in Institutions is updated annually and is only available for the nation as a whole.
