The Index
An evidence-based tool for measuring and fostering trust in humanitarian action
Objectives
The Community Trust Index is a practical, evidence-based framework that helps organisations and programmes to understand, monitor and strengthen the trust placed in them by the people they serve. Built around measurable competencies and values, it transforms the complex and often abstract concept of trust into clear signals that leaders can act on. These signals relate to service quality and perceptions of fairness, which are important for communities. The Community Trust Index provides organisations and programmes with the means to:
Measure
Measure community trust and the factors influencing this trust.
Understand
Understand and track trust over time and compare how community trust differs geographically or between different groups of people.
Act
Develop informed actions for fostering community trust in humanitarian action.
The community trust index
Methodology noteTrust is a multidimensional concept. The Trust Index framework applies a structured approach to measure two primary dimensions widely identified in the literature: competencies (technical reliability) and values/ethics (alignment with community beliefs and priorities).
Competencies refer to community perceptions of the organizations or program’s capability, including its ability to provide timely support, understand community needs, ensure accessibility, be open and approachable, and effectively deliver assistance.
Values/Ethics refer to community perceptions of the organization’s, programs or action’s intentions, such as its fairness, inclusiveness of diverse groups, engagement with the community, transparency, and integrity.
Modules
Institutional Trust
The Institutional Module aims to measure community trust in humanitarian institutions and organisations. It focuses on community trust towards the Red Cross/Red Crescent (RCRC) National Societies, and provides adaptable tools for other organisations working at the local level.
Thematic Trust
Early Warning and Anticipation
Delves into trust in forecast and risk information, early warning systems and actors
Climate Action
Explores trust in locally-led adaptation, social protection for climate and more.
Public Health
Focuses on trust in health preparedness and response efforts including vaccines, and therapeutics
Migration and Displacement
Looks at trust in information aid, and support to population on the move.
Analytical Framework
Our Journey
Step 01.
Planning
Planning is the first phase of the Community Trust Index Journey. It entails building consensus, engaging National Societies’ leadership for buy-in, secure a team, preparing information, trainings, developing research protocols, obtain ethical approvals, and ensuring technical and financial support is available for to collect, analyse and act on data. The Community Trust index can be integrated within existing research activities, such as perception surveys and other assessments, or implemented as standalone provided technical and financial support from a research partner.
Step 02.
Data Collection
In the data collection phase, the team will implement the standardized Community Trust Index survey in using a sampling approach recommended by an expert. To expand the Index to other thematic (climate change, disaster law and auxiliary law) and population groups (women, population on the move, religious groups), annexes to the original survey will de added. To further unpack surveys’ results, NS are recommended to collect qualitative data using key informant interviews, focus group discussions, observations, to grasp the social, historical, political, and behavioural aspects of trust in targeted communities. A guide to qualitative research for the Community Trust Index will be developed. A data storage and management system will be established within existing platforms used by National Societies and IFRC, where resources, tools and instructions can be shared to help National Societies implement the Community Trust Index. A data safeguarding plan will be developed with clear requirements for data storage and sharing.
Step 03.
Data Analysis
Data will be analyzed both quantitative and qualitatively to produce key results, which should be disaggregated to look at the variation of trust according to socio-demographic features and population groups. Data from the Community Trust Index should be triangulated with other type of data on trust available in the Red Cross and Red Crescent movement and beyond. Findings and recommendations should be discussed internally to explore themes further to feed the final report. Although the global Community Trust Index data is owned by the IFRC, the decision to make the data open access or protected from third parties must be made on a case-by-case basis and taken by the National Societies and branches participating in the Index. Different reports and briefs will be produced and tailored to different types of audiences (internal and external).
Step 04.
Findings & Recommendations
This phase considers how findings inform NS and IFRC strategies, plans, and frameworks to improve community trust.
Step 05.
Action plans
To turn data into action requires recurring dialogues, exchange, and collaborations between the research team, National Societies, key decisionmakers, and CEA personnel to ensure uptake of recommendations aiming to restore or build community trust. Findings will inform operational planning and strategic decision-making at the IFRC and National Society levels, and transformed into evidence-based principles, attributes and indicators to access, assess, and certify National Societies.
Step 06.
Evaluation & Learning
The Community Trust Index will be implemented every two years…
Frequently Asked Questions & Answers
A group of people with a common characteristic or interest living together within a larger society. Not everyone in the community is the same and within and across communities there will be a wide range of needs, capacities, and risks. Therefore, when you see the word ‘community’ in this guide, it refers to all the diverse groups who make up a community, including women, men, boys, and girls, older persons, people with disabilities, different ethnic groups, sexual and gender minorities and marginalized or at-risk groups.
Is “a person’s belief that another person or institution will act consistently with their expectations of positive behaviour”. Trust is driven by a solid social contract, which are rules, obligations, norms that bind the different people together and shape their thoughts, attitudes, and behaviours.
In the RCRC context, the issue of trust was highlighted in a special session at the 2019 RCRC International Conference, where one of the key messages was that trust if often taken for granted, and as RCRC organisations we believe that communities trust us, but there is no clear scientific evidence on trust and what aspects we need to improve to achieve the quality and sustainability of our actions. Based on these recommendations, the IFRC’s CEA unit is creating the Community Trust Index as part of the USAID-BHA project to help understand community trust.
A scientifically tested tool(s) for measuring and fostering community trust in the humanitarian action. The tools include implementation guide, a quantitative survey with standardised set of questions that together measure the level of community trust toward a humanitarian aid organisation such as a Red Cross/Red Crescent Society, a qualitative guide to be adapted to complement the survey results, and more guidelines to move from data to action and foster trust in the National Society level. The Trust Index is not a single tool. It is is an initiative that uses a set of tools (the survey is just one tool) to measure trust and grasp the contextual barriers and enablers of trust.
The Community trust Index overall aim is twofold: 1) research: to obtain evidence-based information on the level and variation of community trust, and barriers and enablers and 2) action: to provide recommendations, and action plans to foster and increase community trust, particularly in the Re Cross/Red Crescent Societies.
The Community Trust Index is an IFRC global project led by National Societies through regional coordination. For the Index to achieve its goals, the global, regional, and national levels must work together in a coordinated manner to share guidance, jointly develop plans for data collection and analysis, and develop evidence-based recommendations and interventions to foster trust. Poor collaboration between the different levels could jeopardize the effectiveness of the project and lead to duplication of effort.