Calculative and relational trust in the management of coastal floods and earthquakes: a comparative study (Confianza calculativa y relacional en la gestión de inundaciones costeras y terremotos: un estudio comparativo)

Abstract Local communities have perfected their knowledge about their environments for generations. Considering modern management dynamics and the changing characteristics of their immediate environments, local communities must trust the authorities’ management of these risks. However, different types of risks expose these communities. This article proposes a comparative analysis of local trust dynamics between a locality in the French coast exposed to flood risks, and a town in inner Italy exposed to earthquake risks. The study focuses on how participants express calculative or relational trust through interviews. Results show that French participants consider the local risks of coastal floods to be minimal. In this sense they trust local authorities with the ability to manage these situations, even if generalized concerns over relational trust are also expressed. In Italy local inhabitants express a high awareness of earthquake risks. But the lack of preventive action from local authorities is associated with the expression of low calculative and relational trust.