{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,31]],"date-time":"2026-03-31T09:50:21Z","timestamp":1774950621248,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":49,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"4","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,29]],"date-time":"2026-03-29T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1774742400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"National Recovery and Resilience Plan of the Republic of Bulgaria","award":["SUMMIT BG-RRP-2.004-0008-C01"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["SUMMIT BG-RRP-2.004-0008-C01"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Behavioral Sciences"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Understanding the role of trust in shaping pro-ecological behaviour is essential for advancing effective environmental communication, particularly in societies characterized by low institutional credibility. This study examines how different forms of trust\u2014scientific, institutional, mediatic, and interpersonal\u2014predict pro-ecological behaviour in Bulgaria, a context marked by historically low levels of social and institutional trust. Drawing on a nationally representative survey of 1008 adults, participants rated their trust in six sources of environmental information (experts, public servants, politicians, media, social networks, and friends or relatives) and reported their engagement in various ecological practices. Multiple regression analysis revealed that trust in experts was the strongest positive predictor of pro-ecological behaviour, followed by trust in friends and relatives. Trust in political institutions, media, and online social networks showed no significant associations. These findings suggest that in low-trust societies, interpersonal trust and trust in experts serve as primary drivers of ecological engagement, while institutional trust alone is insufficient to mobilize collective environmental action. The study underscores the importance of fostering both scientific credibility and community-based communication to enhance public participation in sustainability initiatives.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/bs16040511","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,30]],"date-time":"2026-03-30T13:40:52Z","timestamp":1774878052000},"page":"511","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Trust as a Driver of Pro-Ecological Behaviour: The Power of Experts and Interpersonal Networks in a Low-Trust Context"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"16","author":[{"given":"Velina","family":"Hristova","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute for Population and Human Studies, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 1113 Sofia, Bulgaria"},{"name":"Faculty of Philosophy, Sofia University \u201cSt. Kliment Ohridski\u201d, 1504 Sofia, Bulgaria"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7430-1867","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Kaloyan","family":"Haralampiev","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Philosophy, Sofia University \u201cSt. Kliment Ohridski\u201d, 1504 Sofia, Bulgaria"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Ivo","family":"Vlaev","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Center for Behavioural and Implementation Science Interventions, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore 117597, Singapore"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Sonya","family":"Karabeliova","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Faculty of Philosophy, Sofia University \u201cSt. Kliment Ohridski\u201d, 1504 Sofia, Bulgaria"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,29]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"12107","DOI":"10.1073\/pnas.1003187107","article-title":"Expert credibility in climate change","volume":"107","author":"Anderegg","year":"2010","journal-title":"Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"45","DOI":"10.1177\/1748048510386741","article-title":"Climate change and media usage: Effects on problem awareness and behavioural intentions","volume":"73","author":"Arlt","year":"2011","journal-title":"International Communication Gazette"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"10620","DOI":"10.3390\/su70810620","article-title":"Using Web 2.0 and social media technologies to foster proenvironmental action","volume":"7","author":"Ballew","year":"2015","journal-title":"Sustainability"},{"key":"ref_4","unstructured":"BD Clean (2026, March 02). 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