The profits of distrust : citizen-consumers, drinking water, and the crisis of confidence in American government / Manuel P. Teodoro, Samantha Zuhlke, David Switzer.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Teodoro, Manuel P., 1972- author.

Zuhlke, Samantha, author.

Switzer, David, author.

Series:

Business and public policy.

Business and public policy

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Administrative agencies--United States--Public opinion.

Administrative agencies.

Bottled water industry--United States.

Bottled water industry.

Drinking water--Political aspects--United States.

Drinking water.

Drinking water--United States--Public opinion.

Trust--Political aspects--United States.

Trust.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (xx, 309 pages) : digital, PDF file(s).

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 2022.

Summary:

The burgeoning bottled water industry presents a paradox: Why do people choose expensive, environmentally destructive bottled water, rather than cheaper, sustainable, and more rigorously regulated tap water? The Profits of Distrust links citizens' choices about the water they drink to civic life more broadly, marshalling a rich variety of data on public opinion, consumer behavior, political participation, geography, and water quality. Basic services are the bedrock of democratic legitimacy. Failing, inequitable basic services cause citizen-consumers to abandon government in favor of commercial competitors. This vicious cycle of distrust undermines democracy while commercial firms reap the profits of distrust - disproportionately so from the poor and racial/ethnic minority communities. But the vicious cycle can also be virtuous: excellent basic services build trust in government and foster greater engagement between citizens and the state. Rebuilding confidence in American democracy starts with literally rebuilding the basic infrastructure that sustains life.

Contents:

Cover

Half-title

Series information

Title page

Copyright information

Dedication

Epigraph

Contents

List of Figures

List of Tables

Preface

Acknowledgments

1 Basic Services and Trust in Government: The Glorious, Tragic Legacy of America's Water Systems

Water and Trust

A Legacy of Infrastructure

The Rise of Commercial Drinking Water

Urban Water Kiosks in the United States

Puzzling Perceptions

The Curious Demographics of Commercial Drinking Water

Bottles and Jugs for the Poor

Race, Ethnicity, and Drinking Water

Patterns of Perception

Institutional Trust at the Tap

Distrust and Defensive Spending

Merchants of Thirst

The Argument in Brief

Wellsprings of (Dis)trust

A Vicious Cycle

The Profits of Distrust

A Virtuous Cycle?

Plan of the Book

2 The Profits of Distrust: A Political Theory of the Citizen-Consumer

Basic Service Provision

Choice and Rationality

Citizen-Consumer Choice

Basics of Consumer Choice

Substitutes

Beliefs and Branding

Trust in Government and Consumer Choice

Roots of Government (Dis)trust

Experience with Government

Government Reputation

Social Identity

A Political Theory of Citizen-Consumer Behavior

Trust and Quality: A Self-Fulfilling Prophecy

Vicious Cycle

Drinking Water and the Citizen-Consumer

Experience, Identity, and Performative Trust

Direct Experiences and Performative Trust

Service Failure and Exit

Voice, Exit, and Moral Trust

Failure, Identity, and Distrust

Moral Trust and Voice

Moral Trust and Exit

Exit as Substitute for Voice

Trust, Voice, and Good Governance

3 (Dis)trust at the Tap: Experience and Performative Trust

The Flint Water Crisis

Trust at the Tap beyond Flint

Drinking Water Problems and Reduced Trust in Government.

Tap Water Problems and Trust

Service Quality Satisfaction and Trust in Government

Community Infrastructure and Trust in Government

Government Failure Predicts Consumer Behavior

Water Kiosks in the United States

Tap Water Failure and Commercial Water Demand

Causes and Consequences of Performative (Dis)trust

4 Hyperopia and Performative Trust: How Failure over There Shapes Behavior Right Here

A Toxic Tale of Two Cities

Hyperopia at the Tap

Who Is My Neighbor?

Measuring Identity: Physical Proximity and Shared Demographics

The Direct and Indirect Effects of Tap Water Failure

Results: Contagious Defensive Spending

Physical Proximity

Demographic Similarity

Calculating Flint's Impact

Contagious Exit

5 Speaking Up or Opting Out: Moral Trust, Voice, and Exit

Two Women's Responses to Tap Water Failures

Voice: LeeAnne Walters

Exit: Lani Dolifka

Voice and Exit in Response to Tap Water Failure

Choosing Voice: Who Speaks Up?

Trouble at the Tap

Race, Ethnicity, Income, and Voice

Choosing Exit: Moral Distrust and Commercial Water Consumption

Bottled Water Consumption and Trust

Exit as Substitute for Voice: Does Commercial Water Depress Political Participation?

Commercial Water Consumption and Political Participation

The Political Costs of Exit: Bottled Water and Voting

When Voice Is Silenced

The Cost of Silence

The Profits of Exit

Basic Service Failure and Democratic Decline

6 Geographies of Alienation: The Institutional Roots of Distrust

The Enduring Legacy of Biased Political Institutions

The Consequences of Biased Political Institutions

Alienation or Culture?

Southern Black Communities and the 1965 Voting Rights Act

Rural Communities in Appalachia

Water in Appalachia

Hispanic Communities in the Southwest.

Water Kiosks in Houston and Phoenix

Beyond Houston and Phoenix

Political Institutions and Moral Trust

7 When Trust Pays: The Virtuous Cycle of Trust, Participation, and Service Quality

The Virtuous Cycle

Tap Water Consumption and Support for Government Services

Citizen Participation and Government Performance

Voice, Basic Services, and Democracy

8 Basic Services and Rebuilding Legitimacy: The Water-Trust Cycle, from Virtuous to Vicious and Back Again

The Vicious and Virtuous Cycles

The Importance of Basic Services

Earning Trust

Why Governments Must Lead

What Governments Must Do

Excellence

Openness

Transparency

Engagement

Beyond ''Public Relations''

Equity

Why Trust Requires All Three

Basic Services and Trust: Local, State, and Federal Roles

Local Governments

State Governments

Federal Government

Faith in Democracy through Trust at the Tap

The Plan: Better Water for a More Perfect Union

Tap Water Excellence

Reform #1: Consolidation

Reform #2: Regulatory Implementation

Reform #3: Tap Water Aesthetics

Reform #4: Infrastructure Investment

Reform #5: Human Capital

Tap Water Openness

Reform #6: Water System Report Cards

Reform #7: Water Infrastructure as Civic Architecture

Reform #8: Active Outreach

Tap Water Equity

Reform #9: Universal Service

Reform #10: Distributional Analysis

Reform #11: Expanded Mandates for Public Utilities Commissions

Reform #12: Equity Embedded in Administration

The Way Forward

Appendices

Appendix A: Survey Methodology

The NEXUS Survey

Sampling

Administration

The Cooperative Congressional Election Study Survey

The Value of Water Survey

Appendix B: Kiosk Data Collection and Validation

Appendix C: Statistics.

Chapter 3 Statistics

Socioeconomic Status (SES) Factor Score

Chapter 4 Statistics

Spatial Model Specification

W Specification

Moran's I

Counterfactual Effects on Providence, Rhode Island

Chapter 5 Statistics

Chapter 6 Statistics

Chapter 7 Statistics

References

Index.

Notes:

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 31 Aug 2022).

ISBN:

1-009-24490-6

1-009-24487-6

1-009-24489-2

OCLC:

1348488145