Professor Yuval Feldman on Can The Public Be Trusted?

Why do governments rely on coercion and punishment when voluntary cooperation often produces better, more sustainable outcomes?

Episode Summary
On this episode, I’m joined once again by Professor Yuval Feldman, who returns to explore the core question behind his latest book: Can The Public Be Trusted?

Instead of asking how much we trust our governments, Yuval flips the script, asking how much governments trust us, and whether that trust is deserved. Together, we dive into the concept of voluntary compliance, where people follow rules not because they’re forced to, but because they believe in doing the right thing. We unpack the complexity of this idea through real-world examples, from tax compliance to environmental policy to COVID-19 interventions. 

Yuval explains why people who think they’re ethical can actually be the hardest to regulate, and how misplaced trust can lead to serious regulatory blind spots. We also explore the psychological tension between intrinsic motivation and external enforcement, and why regulators often default to command-and-control, even when trust might offer a better solution.

As ever, Yuval makes nuanced, sophisticated ideas feel accessible and immediately relevant. You'll hear about the role of culture, the limits of nudging, why economists might (sometimes!) actually be right about human behaviour and how AI might help policymakers make better decisions. 



Guest Bio
Professor Yuval Feldman is a legal scholar and behavioural scientist at Bar-Ilan University in Israel. A returning guest and the podcast’s very first interviewee, Yuval is internationally renowned for his work at the intersection of law, psychology, and behavioural economics. His new book, Can The Public Be Trusted? The Promise and Perils of Voluntary Compliance is available open-access via Cambridge University Press (link below).

AI-Generated Timestamped Summary
[00:00:00] Introduction: why this question of “can the public be trusted?” matters for regulation and risk

[00:03:42] Yuval’s personal background: how he came into law + psychology and the origin of his VComp lab

[00:09:15] Defining voluntary compliance: what it means, how it differs from coercion

[00:14:52] Intrinsic motivation vs crowding out: when good intentions are undermined by heavy‑handed regulation

[00:21:30] Designing regulatory systems for trust: frameworks and features that support voluntary compliance

[00:27:47] Case study: Covid‑19 and public cooperation—what we learned about trust, compliance and enforcement

[00:34:10] Tax compliance as a trust test: how citizens respond when they believe the system treats them fairly

[00:39:58] Environmental regulation and the limits of voluntary strategies: when culture or technology create barriers

[00:45:22] Cross‑cultural & technological dynamics: how digital reputation, culture and platforms impact compliance

[00:50:05] The perils of voluntary compliance: when trust can be misplaced, manipulated or simply ineffective

[00:55:30] Final reflections: what this means for risk professionals, policymakers and anyone designing systems of human behaviour

[01:00:12] Closing: how to reframe regulation to see the public not as a risk but as a resource.

Links
Yuval's academic profile -  https://law.biu.ac.il/en/feldman

His profile on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/yuval-feldman-21942514/
 
His open-access book Can the Public Be Trusted? (Cambridge University Press) – https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/can-the-public-be-trusted/B3E11831E3051D4E928B9252B6767A4B


Yuval’s previous appearances on the show 
On The Law of Good People or ‘why we should write rules for good people not bad people’ (2019) - https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/professor-yuval-feldman-on-why/
 
On Trust & Voluntary Compliance (2022) - https://www.humanriskpodcast.com/professor-yuval-feldman-on-trust-compliance?