PETALING JAYA: Teachers are the most trusted professionals while politicians and social media influencers are the two least trusted in Malaysia, according to the Ipsos Global Trustworthiness Index 2024.
About 59% of respondents found teachers to be trustworthy while 41% and 36% said they did not trust politicians and social media influencers, respectively, said Ipsos Malaysia, which created the annual index.
“In Malaysia, the landscape of trust towards various professions remains consistent. Key professions such as teachers, doctors, scientists and the armed forces consistently rank as the top five most trusted professions.
“Conversely, politicians are the least trusted profession in Malaysia, mirroring global trends,” said the market research firm.
“Social media influencers are also experiencing substantial distrust, ranking just below politicians in terms of public distrust.
“Despite their increasing presence, the trust in social media influencers remains low,” said Ipsos Malaysia in a press release on the 2024 index.
However, it also noted that the global average of distrust towards politicians and social media influencers is generally higher than in Malaysia.
“In this year’s survey, politicians have a rival for least trustworthy. Only 15% say they trust social media influencers, the same proportion who trust politicians,” said Ipsos Malaysia.
This is the first year social media influencers have been included as a profession in the index.
Besides politicians and social media influencers, other professions that are viewed with scepticism by Malaysians are government ministers, advertising executives and religious leaders, the firm said.
Meanwhile, other most trusted professions in Malaysia include TV news readers, bankers, police, lawyers and serving staff.
“Globally, the trust in essential professions remains high, particularly among educators and those who ensure our health and security,” said Ipsos Malaysia.
One of the key findings in the global index also found that there has been a slight uptick in trustworthiness in 2024 compared to 2018 for some professions, including journalists, lawyers, bankers and business leaders.
The index was compiled using responses collected from 23,530 online adults under the age of 75 across 32 countries.
