Trust as Affects. Conceptualizing trust for digital public services to foster social inclusion for migrants

Abstract

The digitalization of public services poses a risk of exacerbating existing social inequalities with migrant communities facing various problems from access to ease of use. Within the Nordics, this poses a particular risk as migration is increasingly necessary for the continuation of the welfare state, but the exclusion risks the foundations of trust and equality that are at their core. By reviewing empirical studies on trust, migrants and public services, we conceptualize trust as an affect that emerges from interactions between individual histories, societal discourses and public institutions. Our work bridges social sciences and HCI together to bring a unique contribution that builds a theoretical framework for trust in public services, particularly digital services, which have not been studied extensively among migrant populations. Our framework supports emerging understandings of trust and indicates shifts necessary in creating and implementing digital public services in ways that support an affect of trust.