Social and Political Dimensions of Trust and Trustworthiness Workshop

Much is made of trust (and its related concepts of trustworthiness, distrust and untrustworthiness) and its role in the problems faced by contemporary societies. A lack of trust or distrust are claimed to contribute to individual and public health outcomes, to vaccine hesitancy, to disengagement from society and its institutions, and to increased support for alternative forms of political engagement – from protest to support for populist parties. High levels of trust are associated with health, happiness and human flourishing. This workshop brings together philosophers working on various aspects of trust and social philosophy to discuss conceptual questions regarding the role and impact of trust and distrust in social groups, communities and society and normative questions concerning what individuals, organisations and policymakers ought to do about the ongoing ‘crisis’ of trust and its political and social effects.   The workshop will cover the full range of trust's effects from the epistemic to the practical. We will explore what role trust (and distrust) may have in establishing or undermining epistemic, distributive or social justice; how social structures and trust interact and support or displace each other; how major social changes - including Covid-19 and the rise of new technologies like A.I. and social media - impact and are impacted by trust; what role do trust and distrust play in the emergence and spread of conspiracy theories, misinformation and 'alternative facts'; should individuals, experts or institutions look to build trust and if they can, how should they do so; and can we "scaffold" trust by developing the right institutions. Confirmed speakers include Professor Mona Simion (University of Glasgow), Dr Yonatan Shemmer (University of Sheffield), Dr Somayeh Tohidi (London School of Economics), Dr Matthew Bennett (University of Essex) and Matt Clark (University of Leeds).  This workshop is made possible by the support of the MIND Association and Inter-Disciplinary Ethics Applied Centre, University of Leeds.   The workshop will run from 09:00 to 17:30 on Monday 19th May.   Attendance is free, but registration is required.