Distrust restricts information so the distruster never learns to distrust less

Evidence

Perhaps this is the sense of Luhmann’s (1980, 4) claim that distrust is self-reinforcing: It does not generate enough information for the distruster to correct his or her view of possibilities. — Russell Hardin, Trust and Trustworthiness, 984

Categorization

• DEFINE: Clarifies Luhmann’s self-reinforcing distrust: it is an information pathology — withholding engagement forecloses the corrective data that would reveal one’s assessment is wrong.
• XREF: Connects to the stated purpose: in Saramago’s blindness, vanished observability means no information flow to correct anyone’s assessment of others’ trustworthiness — distrust spirals exactly as Luhmann predicts. — connects to: Never violating a taboo prevents learners from disconfirming it, preserving it via negativity bias. — Joseph Henrich, The Secret of Our Success: How Culture…, 519