Trust and Distrust in Public Institutions

Maison Suger is pleased to host the first session of the seminar organised by GRETS, Trust and Distrust in Public Institutions, with Alexis Spire (CNRS/IRIS, EHESS). The session will be introduced by Michaël Fernandez (GRETS, EDF R&D).

Incivility at service counters, attacks on public sector employees, violence in hospitals... Distrust of state institutions has reached levels in France that are rarely seen elsewhere in Europe. Challenging alarmist narratives about the rise of populism, sociologist Alexis Spire argues that this distrust stems primarily from transformations within the state itself.

This analysis resonates strongly with the challenges facing a group like EDF, which operates at the intersection of public service obligations, industrial imperatives, and market dynamics. How can trust be maintained as services become increasingly digitalized, local presence evolves, and expectations of proximity remain high? How can economic performance be reconciled with equitable access to energy and perceptions of the public good? More broadly, what does distrust in the state reveal about the expectations placed on companies that play a direct role in implementing major public policies, foremost among them the energy transition?

Alexis Spire’s argument is grounded in a series of surveys and draws on a rich and diverse body of empirical evidence, both quantitative and qualitative. A key strength of his approach lies in his examination of citizens’ everyday interactions with a range of public institutions, including the justice system, the tax administration, the police, schools, and hospitals. Following the same line of inquiry, he also investigates public policies related to the energy transition, a domain in which the respective roles of the state and the market are constantly evolving, reshaping in turn the relationships between citizens and the institutions responsible for implementing this transition. The book therefore offers multiple insights for the EDF Group, both in its capacity as an energy provider and as an actor operating within competitive market environments.

• Alexis Spire is Research Director at the CNRS. He is the author of several landmark works on social inequality, taxation, and the sociology of the state.

• SPIRE Alexis, Légitime défiance. Le ressentiment des Français face à l'État. Paris, PUF, 2026.
• SPIRE Alexis, Résistances à l'impôt, attachement à l'Etat. Enquête sur les contribuables français, Paris, Seuil, 2018.
• SPIRE Alexis, Accueillir ou reconduire. Enquête sur les guichets de l’immigration, Raisons d’agir, 2008