Trust is shaped over time, built through lived experience, consistency and a sense of shared purpose. While it can disappear overnight, that is rare. More worrying is that trust can change quietly, as uncertainty grows and people reassess who and what they can rely on.
The 2026 Edelman Trust Barometer captures this shift, tracing a long-term global move from anxiety to grievance and now towards something more subtle and complex: insularity.
Around the world, seven in 10 people say they hesitate to trust someone whose values, approach to societal problems, beliefs or cultural background differ from their own. In some markets, that instinct to narrow trust is even more pronounced.
The UAE stands apart in this global picture, reflecting a truly
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