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Institute for Regenerative Systems Architecture^™IRSA^™Catalysing systems designed for renewal

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Legitimacy Drift

Institutional Trust Decay

Definition

The systematic decline in public trust across institutional categories. Unlike drift in a single institution, trust decay affects entire institutional types—government, media, corporations, NGOs.

Example

Trust in 'the media' or 'government' or 'corporations' declines regardless of individual institutional performance. The category itself loses legitimacy.

Source

LD Section 6

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Related Terms from Legitimacy Drift

Legitimacy Drift (Cumulative Erosion)

Legitimacy Capital

Legitimacy Spending

Trust Threshold

Legitimacy Recovery

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