Society Is Becoming More Insular

In 1624, the English poet John Donne wrote, “No man is an island entire of itself.” But today, this memorable declaration of our need for one another is now often replaced by insularity, a psychological state shaped by fears and crises. This insularity negatively impacts us on a personal, and societal, level. 

The 2026 Edelman Trust Barometer finds that 70% of our 33,938 respondents across 28 nations now are hesitant or unwilling to trust someone who has different values, information sources, approaches to societal problems, or backgrounds than them. This majority holds across income levels, gender, age groups, developing and developed markets.

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This trend suggests that we are choosing a closed ecosystem of trust that mandates a limited worldview, a narrowing of opinion, intellectual stasis, and cultural rigidity. For most people, distrust is the default instinct; only one-third of respondents tell us that most people can be trusted. Insular respondents say they would have profoundly lower trust in institutions if led by anyone different from them (-28 pts or more, compared to people with open trust mindsets). Too often, we withdraw from dialogue and compromise. We opt for the safety of the familiar over the perceived risk of innovation. We prefer nationalism to global connection. We choose individual benefit over common advancement.

How did we get here? In its quarter century, the Trust Barometer has captured an inexorable erosion of belief in institutions and their leaders. Trust is increasingly local—to one’s employer, CEO, and social circle. We find a 15-point trust gap between high and low earners worldwide, with the U.S. leading the pack with a 29-point income-based trust divide. Concerns about downward economic mobility and job losses due to globalization have increased political polarization. Covid-19 bred doubt about government edicts and skepticism about science, provoking an existential battle for truth. Geopolitical tensions have led to nationalism, hostility to global agreements, and a reorientation of trade flows. 

Last year, the Edelman Trust Barometer documented a descent into grievance, with six in 10 of our respondents telling us that they feel business and government actions harmed them, served the interests of only some, and that the system unfairly favors the rich. Today, our collective mindset has pulled back from alarm and anger into the hard shell of insularity.

Now, we are all being confronted by the consequences of insularity. The first is resistance to change. For instance, our November flash poll, Trust and Artificial Intelligence at a Crossroads, found that by over a two-to-one margin, the U.S., UK, and Germany reject the growing use of AI. Seventy percent in the U.S. believe that CEOs are not telling them the truth about job losses due to AI. Second, we see pervasive nationalism, with deep preference for domestic over multinational brands (31 points in Canada and 29 points in Germany). Third, societies are losing the capacity to act, with climate action stalled in favor of short-term economic interest and urgent local projects such as affordable housing being blocked. Fourth and most troubling is a global loss of optimism. On average, only 15% of people in developed markets believe that the next generation will be better off, while the APAC powerhouses of Singapore, Thailand, India, and China all show double-digit declines in this optimism since last year.

Fortunately, there is a way to counter insularity: brokering trust. A trust broker helps to create a path for progress and cooperation despite insularity by surfacing common interests and translating realities. There is a tremendous opportunity for employers to be brokers of trust because they are both proximate and reliable. While each institution is expected to broker trust, employers are the only group who have a majority reporting that they’re doing it well. The office is now considered the safest space for discussion of difficult topics because there are rules for behavior. It is at work that we address challenges such as AI, globalization, and affordability head on. And crucially, you can see tangible change in your day-to-day life when leaders commit to new decisions.

Why should employers embrace this role as brokers of trust? Insularity is a bottom-line issue, undermining productivity, causing churn, and threatening the basic ability to lead. There must be frank discussions in the workplace led by the CEO or other leaders. 

But business leaders should not be alone in the fight against insularity. Visible members of the community such as doctors or pastors should be trusted partners in furthering dialogue. Countering insularity will require that all community stakeholders step up to the challenge.  

John Donne was right to conclude his poem with an admonition: “Therefore send not to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee.” We are becoming inflexible, intolerant, and incoherent in our cocoons. The risks to society—from manic swings in popular sentiment and rejection of innovation—are real. We must ensure that self-righteous perspectives give way to belief in the future. 

We all have a role to play in establishing trust, and defeating insularity, in our communities. But employers especially have an opportunity to lead the way.