Latest snapshot shows political
affiliation greatly influences trust perceptions
MURFREESBORO,
Tenn. — A recent statewide survey of Tennesseans by MTSU’s Office of Consumer
Research indicate consumers highly trust recommendations from people they know
as well as other consumers, but don’t have as much confidence in information
from Congress or mainstream television news media.
The current survey of
627 Tennessee consumers was conducted between June 10 and June 19 with a margin
of error of 4 percentage points. In addition to its traditional questions about
consumer views on the economy and finances, the latest survey also gauged the level
of trust in a number of different institutions.
“As expected, levels of
trust for anything or anyone politically related vary greatly by the respondent’s
political affiliation,” noted Tim Graeff, director of the Office of Consumer
Research in MTSU’s Jones College of Business.
For example, while 77
percent of Republicans surveyed said they “completely trust” or “somewhat
trust” President Donald Trump, only
9 percent of Democrats, 33 percent of independents and 20 percent of
respondents with no political affiliation expressed such trust in the
president.
The full report can be
viewed at http://www.mtsu.edu/consumer/tnoutlookreports.php under the “Tennessee
Trust Survey” link. Other report highlights:
• President Trump and Gov. Bill Haslam enjoy relatively high
levels of trust among Tennesseans. Of the institutions included on the
survey, the U.S. Congress garnered
the lowest level of trust.
• Tennesseans place a
higher level of trust in information from marketers (advertisements for product
and brands) than they do many of the well-known media outlets and the U.S.
Congress.
• Republicans have a higher level of
trust in fellow Republicans in Congress (63 percent responding either “completely
trust” or “somewhat trust”) than Democrats
have in fellow Democrats in Congress (54 percent responding either “completely
trust” or “somewhat trust”).
• Although there are
some minor variations in responses across the three regions of the state, there
is relative agreement among Tennesseans in terms of whom they trust.
For more information, contact
Graeff at 615-898-5124 or Tim.Graeff@mtsu.edu.
Or visit www.mtsu.edu/consumer.
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