In this book, Bo Rothstein examines 'social traps' where distrust prevents cooperation, despite mutual benefits. He explores how social capital and trust can be fostered through universal political institutions and policies promoting equality. Rothstein introduces collective memory theory to propose how these institutions can be created.
Beneficial social and economic exchange relies on a certain level of trust. But trust is a delicate matter, not least in the former socialist countries where illegitimate behaviour by governments made distrust a habit. The chapters in this volume analyze the causes and the effects of the lack of social trust in post-socialist countries. The contributions originated in the Collegium Budapest project on Honesty and Theory and Experience in the Light of the Post-Socialist Transition. A second volume entitled, Building a Trustworthy State in Post-Socialist Transition , is being published simultaneously.