Trust in People Scale

Abstract

The Trust in People Scale (TIPS), often referred to as the General Social Trust Scale, is a brief, seminal instrument developed in 1969 by the Survey Research Center (SRC) at the University of Michigan. It measures generalized social trust, commonly known as interpersonal trust, using three core, forced-choice items. This scale is fundamental in sociological and political science research, as it efficiently gauges fundamental attitudes about the benevolence and trustworthiness of the general population. The TIPS is widely employed in large-scale social and political surveys, serving as a critical indicator in studies of social cohesion, social capital, and democratic stability.

Keywords

Social trust, interpersonal trust, generalized trust, political attitudes, Survey Research Center, SRC, social capital, psychological measurement.

Authors

Survey Research Center (SRC), University of Michigan; popularized in foundational measurement works by Robinson, John P., and Shaver, Phillip R.

Purpose

The primary purpose of the Trust in People Scale is to efficiently measure an individual’s fundamental expectation regarding the honesty, fairness, and helpfulness of unknown others within society. It is specifically designed for use in large-scale demographic and survey methodology contexts, where brevity and clarity are paramount. The scale provides a concise assessment of the level of generalized trust prevalent across diverse populations, enabling researchers to analyze macro-level societal cohesion, public opinion, and the prerequisites for effective collective action and cooperation in social dilemmas.

Construct

The scale measures the construct of generalized social trust. This construct is defined as a stable attitude or belief that the majority of people in society are benevolent, reliable, and honest, and that they will not intentionally seek to take advantage of others. Generalized trust is distinct from specific trust (trust directed toward a known individual or institution) in that it is directed toward anonymous members of society. It is consistently considered a key component of social capital, distinguishing individuals who view the social world as fundamentally cooperative from those who perceive it as competitive or potentially predatory.

Validity

Given its decades-long inclusion in major national and international surveys (such as the General Social Survey and the World Values Survey), the Trust in People Scale is recognized for its strong face validity in measuring generalized trust. Studies focusing on **construct validity** have demonstrated that scores derived from the TIPS correlate meaningfully with theoretically related constructs, including measures of civic engagement, philanthropic behavior, willingness to engage in cooperative public goods games, and overall political efficacy. Despite its brevity, its consistency and predictive power across varied cultural and political contexts support its interpretation as a valid indicator of fundamental generalized social attitudes.

Reliability

As the Trust in People Scale consists of only three dichotomous (forced-choice) items, traditional measures of internal consistency, such as Cronbach’s Alpha, are often low or considered inappropriate for standard reporting. Therefore, its reliability is typically assessed through **test-retest reliability** in longitudinal studies, where it has consistently exhibited moderate to high stability over time, reflecting the robust and stable nature of the underlying social attitude being measured. Furthermore, its consistency in measuring the same concept across different large-scale survey waves and diverse international datasets attests to its practical reliability as a high-utility measurement tool.

Factor Analysis

Empirical analyses, including confirmatory and exploratory factor analysis, consistently confirm that the three items of the scale load onto a single, unidimensional factor representing generalized social trust. Although the items probe slightly different facets of trust—covering honesty (“can be trusted”), benevolence (“try to be helpful”), and fairness (“try to be fair”)—they cohere robustly as indicators of a single underlying psychological construct. This confirmed unidimensionality justifies its common practice of being used as a simple summated or index score in quantitative empirical research.

Instrument

Test Type: Attitude Scale (Self-report)

Format: Three forced-choice items (Dichotomous response options)

Language Available: English (Original); widely translated and adapted for use in numerous international surveys (e.g., Spanish, German, Chinese, etc.).

Population Group: General adult population

Age Group: Adults (typically 18 years and older)

Population Details: Used extensively in national representative samples (e.g., General Social Survey, American National Election Studies).

Test Methodology: Standardized survey administration, typically embedded within larger questionnaires administered via interviews, telephone surveys, or self-completion forms.

Keywords

Generalized trust, social trust, interpersonal trust, political science, Survey Research Center, SRC, public opinion, social measurement.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: N/A (Institutional/Historical Scale)

Affiliation Email addresses: N/A (Contact Survey Research Center, University of Michigan)

Correspondence Address: Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

Permissions: The scale is generally considered to be in the public domain for academic and non-commercial research purposes due to its inclusion in major publicly funded national and international surveys. Formal permission is typically not required, but citation of the original source (SRC, 1969, and relevant compilations) is mandatory.

Fee: No direct fee is associated with the use of the instrument.

Test Year: 1969

Reference’s

The original instrument documentation and source materials are available as PDF files. The instrument can be found at the following locations:

• http://fetzer.org/sites/default/files/images/stories/pdf/selfmeasures/Self_Measures_for_Trust_TRUST_IN_PEOPLE.pdf
• Measures of social psychological attitudes (PDF)

The scale is drawn from foundational works on social and political attitudes:

• Robinson, J., Rusk, G., and Head, K. (1968). Measures of political attitudes. Ann Arbor, Michigan: Survey Research Center, University of Michigan.
• Robinson, John P., Shaver, Phillip R. (1969). Measures of Political Attitudes. Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan. Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Further research utilizing and validating the scale includes:

• Yamagishi, T. (1986). The provisioning of a sanctioning system as a public good. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 51, 110-116.
• Hetherington, M. J. (1998). The political relevance of political trust. The American Political Science Review, 92, 791-808.
• Levi, M. & Stoker, L. (2000). Political trust and trustworthiness. Annual Review of Political Science, 3, 475-507.

Items of the Trust in People Scale

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

1. Generally speaking, would you say that most people can be trusted or that you can’t be too careful in dealing with people?

• (a) Most people can be trusted
• (b) can’t be too careful

2. Would you say that most of the time, people try to be helpful, or that they are mostly just looking out for themselves?

• (a) Try to be helpful
• (b) Look out for themselves.

3. Do you think that most people would try to take advantage of you if they got the chance or would they try to be fair?

• (a) Take advantage
• (b) Try to be fair