What the people of the world are saying

Overall, 65 per cent of respondents worldwide said they did not think they were governed by the will of the people.
* This rose to 75 per cent in the former Soviet Union countries.
* In North America it was 60 per cent.
* More South Africans held the contrary opinion than any other regional group, with 59 per cent maintaining they were governed by the will of the people, and 34 per cent disagreeing.

When all the regions were combined, opinion was almost equally divided o­n whether national elections were free and fair, 47 per cent saying yes and 48 per cent saying no.

The type of people most trusted by respondents were religious leaders, with 33 per cent saying they trusted them, while military and police leaders and journalists ranked joint second o­n 26 per cent.

Only 13 per cent said they trusted politicians.

But asked what type of people they would like to give more power to in their country,
* 35 per cent of respondents chose intellectuals, putting them above every other group.
* Religious leaders came next, o­n 25 per cent,
* followed by military leaders, business leaders and journalists, o­n 20 per cent.

National identity remained very strong, the poll found. It ranked highest o­n the list of what people considered most important, at 32 per cent,
* followed by religion (21) and
* local region or city (19).

Interviewees were also asked who had the most influence o­n the decisions they had taken in their life. A big majority, 61 per cent, said it was their family or a partner; 10 per cent said it was friends.

However, behind the global figures there are wide variations between countries and regions. There is a low level of trust in all types of leaders throughout Europe. Almost a third of people expressed no trust in military, religious, business or political leaders or journalists. The media and journalists are particularly distrusted in Europe.

Japanese people have very little trust in authority figures. o­nly 1 per cent have faith in military or police leaders, 3 per cent trust religious leaders and 13 per cent business leaders.

Religious leaders are most trusted in Africa (74 per cent, against 33 per cent globally), and in Nigeria 86 per cent would give them more power. In the US, 50 per cent trust them and 40 per cent would give them more power.

The Guardian, Associated PressAdidas Yeezy shoes