Repairing political trust in Tunisia.

Abstract

Purpose: this study aims to identify the responses required to repair political trust in Tunisia and the differences between two key stakeholder groups, namely politicians and voters. Design/methodology/approach: A qualitative longitudinal study was adopted using two data sources: media data from TV political talk shows; and semi-structured interviews conducted with citizens and politicians. Data was collected following several key events that violated trust. Findings: New responses were identified to repair political trust and these were categorized using a trust repair framework. In addition to short and long-term responses a new category, swift response, was identified to resolve immediate political uncertainty. The role of the trustor (i.e. voters) in actively restoring trust was identified for the first time. Research limitations: This study focused on trust repair responses suggested by voters and politicians and not responses that were implemented by the government or political parties during the period of study. The effectiveness of the suggested responses in repairing trust was not therefore evaluated. Practical implications: Identification of the responses required to repair trust with voters and how these differ over time and according to different trust violations will help Tunisian politicians rebuild trust more effectively during election and non-election periods. Notably, differences highlighted between the responses suggested by voters and politicians suggest that politicians may not understand how to repair voter trust. Originality/value: Contrary to previous studies that assume a trustor (the voter) is a passive observer, this research identified the proactive role that citizens play in the trust repair process.