The Phenomenon of Trust in the Philosophy of Adam Seligmen

Abstract

The article analyzes the picture of historical changes in perceptions of the phenomenon of trust, which was proposed by the American philosopher and sociologist Adam Seligman. For a long time thinkers perceived trust as something identical to “faith”. However, under the in­fluence of the works of Niklas Luhmann, this understanding began to be reconsidered. Trust began to be seen as an integral element of daily interactions and was explored not only as a part of interpersonal communication, but also as a part of an individual’s interaction with social institutions and systems. Luhmann showed that the phenomenon of trust plays a much important role in our lives than it was thought before, and this gave impetus to further re­search into trust. It was on this wave that Seligman’s concept of trust arose. In his opinion, the phenomenon of trust in its proper sense appeared only in the Modern Times and it was connected with the formation of individualism, increasing social differentiation and deepen­ing the division of labor. The individual becomes an autonomous bearer of values, and this changes the previous balance between social prescriptions and individual acts of will. Under the new conditions, people, according to Seligman, began to express themselves much more through actions that transcended social roles and reflected the uniqueness of the individual. The individual actualizes himself as an individual by moving from one social role to another in a space where there are no clear prescriptions and norms, thus deserving or losing the trust of others. For more complete comprehension of the phenomenon of trust the article compares trust with confidence, faith and spiritual closeness.