International Review of Administrative Sciences, Ahead of Print.
The COVID-19 pandemic extended interest in the relationships between citizens and governments in turbulent times of crises and emergencies. While the pandemic generated a critical existential threat to the lives of many, it also had a significant effect on the quality of life and on the wellbeing of even larger populations. This paper deals with the relationship between the wellbeing of citizens and three types of trust in governance (i.e. trust in political institutions, trust in public administration, trust in enforcement institutions) during the pandemic. We aim at advancing knowledge on both wellbeing and trust during crises, and more specifically on direct and indirect patterns of these important relationships. To do so, we suggest alternative models and a series of hypotheses aimed at examining them empirically. Two datasets on Israeli citizens are used. They were collected over two points in time during the heat of the pandemic and toward its decline and end (Study 1/t1; N = 1026 and Study 2/t2; N = 3024) and largely represent major sectors and ethnicities in the population. The findings generally support a positive relationship between wellbeing and trust, but more importantly indicate that during crisis, trust in public administration and enforcement institutions mediates the relationship between wellbeing and trust in political institutions. We thus argue that the public service may act as a bridge between citizens’ wellbeing and political trust. In our view, the findings testify to the complexity of the wellbeing–trust relationship, especially in challenging times. Implications and directions for future studies are suggested.Points for practitioners Trust in governance is different for various political institutions and for different public administration organizations, especially in turbulent timesCivil servants should be aware of citizens’ wellbeing during crises as it affects trust in governanceCitizen trust and wellbeing are significantly related in times of emergency and crises
Defensive issue linkage: exploring the origins of environmental content in trade agreements
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“Dark” positivity: Do candidates with a more aversive personality use positive campaigning more often?
Party Politics, Ahead of Print.
Although positive campaigning is a widely used communication strategy in election campaigns, determinants aside from political characteristics and gender are largely unknown. However, the personality traits of candidates could affect campaigning strategies beyond these factors. Recent research shows that people with an aversive (“dark”) personality tend to self-promote and are attracted to leadership positions. Transferring these findings to self-promotion in election campaigns, I ask if candidates with a more aversive personality use positive campaigning more often. 2,133 candidates who ran for 10 state parliaments in Germany in 2021, 2022, and 2023 self-reported how often they used positive campaigning. Analyses via structural equation modeling show that the candidates’ aversive personality is positively and significantly related to their use of positive campaigning and that this relationship holds when controlling for political and sociodemographic characteristics. The implications of the findings and potential pathways for further research are discussed.
Although positive campaigning is a widely used communication strategy in election campaigns, determinants aside from political characteristics and gender are largely unknown. However, the personality traits of candidates could affect campaigning strategies beyond these factors. Recent research shows that people with an aversive (“dark”) personality tend to self-promote and are attracted to leadership positions. Transferring these findings to self-promotion in election campaigns, I ask if candidates with a more aversive personality use positive campaigning more often. 2,133 candidates who ran for 10 state parliaments in Germany in 2021, 2022, and 2023 self-reported how often they used positive campaigning. Analyses via structural equation modeling show that the candidates’ aversive personality is positively and significantly related to their use of positive campaigning and that this relationship holds when controlling for political and sociodemographic characteristics. The implications of the findings and potential pathways for further research are discussed.