Towards a Critical Theory of Trust with Rainer Forst

Research seminar with Rainer Forst, Professor of Political Theory and Philosophy at the Department of Political Science and Department of Philosophy, Johann Wolfgang Goethe University, Frankfurt/Main. His work in moral and political philosophy focuses on questions of justification, justice and toleration.This paper challenges widespread assumptions in trust research according to which “thick” forms of trust emerge in homogeneous communities, or which regard trust and conflict as opposing terms or where trust is generally seen as a value. The paper suggests a distinction between a general (non-normative) concept and various normative conceptions of trust, depending on context. With regard to the justification of trust, a distinction between particular and full justification is introduced, and the justification of trust is linked to relations of justification between trusters and trusted. Finally, trust in conflicts emerges where such relations exist among the parties of a conflict, often by way of institutional mediation. Research seminar recorded at the Institute for Futures Studies in december 2024.