WATCH NEXT: Things That Would Horrify Danes About America: ua-cam.com/video/oWo1GaYiAaQ/v-deo.html You can listen to the What The Denmark podcast episode about trust on: Apple Podcasts: podcasts.apple.com/dk/podcast/trust-how-and-why-danes-have-the-highest-trust-levels/id1561444188?i=1000543696298 Spotify: open.spotify.com/episode/0cLNDJAOOYbIfpak89w0ah?si=alpbdAlmTlOXLwktNJ6tyg as well as see more episodes via: www.whatthedenmark.com/
Sam here from the video! First off, thanks Derek for inviting me on! It's always fun to talk about these sorts of things which are confusing/ interesting as a non-Dane in Denmark :) If anyone here has any follow up questions about trust, then happy to (do my best to) answer them!
In many ways it reminds me of how it felt as a kid growing up in the 70's in the UK. The levels of trust in society back then was much higher, people left babies outside the shops, we roamed around freely to play as kids with no worries about what might happen. I still find the trust levels here in Denmark a wonderful surprise, even after over 2 years of living here - it's very satisfying.
Hey Danny, have to agree as well. We were 80s/90s kids and felt like we had a lot more freedom to run around all day and play without fear and could trust that a neighbor or even stranger would help us if needed.
The story with the baby in the pram is such a good example of the culture difference. The Americans are thinking, I can't believe she would leave her baby out where anyone can just take it. And the Danes are thinking, I can't believe people in USA steal babies. Serious question though, why would anyone steal a baby? I have a baby, and they are a lot of work!
HAHA Great question! Most Americans go out of their way to avoid having a baby (which is harder in some states these days) but I don't think many would steal one! I don't know why it's so shocking to us to leave one outside - I think it's just the tiniest risk makes us so nervous.
As a starting point we Danes live by the concept “Bonus pater familias” which means: designation of a right thinking, trustworthy person (with a prudent way of acting). bonus pater familias one who acts thoughtfully and responsibly within the Limits of Freedom of Action
Is low corruption a cause of high trust levels or is it a result of high trust? Maybe low corruption and high trust levels both rooted in something entirely different.
@@heinedenmark It seems I read your comment wrong. I thought you attributed the trust in the society in general to low corruption. I agree that the trust in the system has much to do with low corruption. Btw, the egg evolved millions of years before the chicken :)
My brother lives in coppenhagen currently and he says danes have told him about 40% of the populace works in or related to the government. It's pretty easy to trust when 1 in 2 people you know is on the inside.
Great video, a difference in trust that I noticed between Denmark and from other countries there is no stuff outside the stores or they are locked with a chain, so that people don't steal. While here in Denmark there is a lot of stuff outside the store that people technically can just take.
I´m Danish and a mom. I left my baby outside shops and cafés all the time in Copenhagen, BUT I would never have done that in NYC. I think you need to use your common sense. Just because it is safe to do that in Denmark, doesn´t meant that it is safe to do so in NYC
@ tW May make your decisions somewhat more scientific. Crime figures do get published. Strange indicator for crime btw..degree to which babies get stolen? More common is ripdeal fi5t fights ATM machine explosions (popular in Germany at this time, but as it appears performed by Netherlands crooks).
Oh the prams ❤️ My Dutch husband had the biggest scare when we were first dating. We were walking my dog in a local park/woods, and he stops and go "What's that? Should we call the police or something?" I was thoroughly confused until I realised that he was talking about a pram between the trees. People were having a picnic about 100-200 meters away, I told it's probably their kid and they don't want the baby to wake up from the noise of their party. He was very skeptical and it took a bit of back and forth to get him to walk on with me 😂
Same, it was a big shock for us too. Even while editing this video I couldn’t believe how perfect it was that there was a pram in the background unattended 😂
I have found there is more trust and honesty here in Croatia than I experience in UK. As an example, one time I needed toner for my printer and found a supplier about 40 minutes drive from me. I went there and they gave me the toner but explained that they are an online shop, they don't have facilities for cash or card payments. They trusted me to take the product home and then order it and pay online.
Don't get me wrong, I think that the trust system in Denmark is great and I have enjoyed it (and contributed to it by doing my part) for quite a few years now, as a foreigner living here. However, I sometimes find myself baffled at how some danes seem to expect the exact same thing abroad. Denmark is the absolute exception in this regard. Most other countries are filled with corruption and sketchiness at all levels in society, like Italy, where I'm from (And it's incredibly hard to fix such a system). So to me, it can come across as being naive to how the world works, in a way that can unfortunately put the person in danger if they find themselves in an environment where things work in more complicated ways. I guess I'm jealous, because I wish more countries learned from Denmark, so I say this with love for both of my countries
I've visited countries where they they think that a Nordic level of high trust, is so stupid, that they cheat on you any time, it just serves you right for being so dumb. Or you being a trustful, been taken as meaning that you want to be taking advantage of, your giving permission to be misused. Like: if something is not locked up, anyone can take it (steal it). If a woman is alone in a bar, she wants to be raped. If you are not exactly controlled, you can cheat in an exam. If the municipality doesn't closely check your economy, you can smartly profit from such support-programs, you are not entitled to. Actually this difference in cultures makes people "racists" and worse.
The thing is, I as a Dane, see this slowly sadly have been going that direction here as well, over the past 20,40 years. Less and less, trust, honesty, more corruption ect.
Your words pleases and touches me Adele. Many danes don’t realises that what we have here in Denmark is rather unike, and way above what other countries. Allthough it’s a popular description, our rate of corruption is vertually close to zero. For decades Denmark has been concidered the least corrupt country in the world. I don’t know, in many ways some danes believe that they can do the same in other countries as we can here. Our freedom of speech is above most other countries, and the security we got from our government is at the top too.
@@kasperkjrsgaard1447 When my parents come to visit me in Dk they are constantly in awe of how well things work here. Yes, Italy has "good" systems too, for most things, giving the illusion that it is possible to do things nice and properly. But then you get proven wrong time and time again. It's exhausting. Never-ending cumbersom burocracy, offices don't aswer the phone, don't help, police can be lazy.. and tons of stupid obstacles and little games you have to avoid or play along with. It's not easy to be a honest citizen in that environment because you often feel disrespected and cheated. Still we try our best. Despite everything, and maybe exactly because of this way of doing things, Italy has taught me a lot. That you have to insist, make your voice heard and find like-minded people for support. Sometimes I think it's just part of our culture. But no, it doesn't have to be that way. Still, I hope danes visiting Italy can make the most of our beautiful culture, places, people, food, while being aware of our challenges, appreciate us for what we have to offer.
@@kasperkjrsgaard1447 From a Swedish perspective I must agree! 😁In many ways Denmark shockingly seems more relaxed, more alcohol, more prostitution, less rules (examples: consumer protection, and cars on the most beautiful beaches), more NATO-wars, ... But then again suddenly more restricted and stricter (on the crimes which plague us here), proactive strong common sense, less freedom to roam, more hiearchical workplaces, more demanding academic exams (I find it very unlikely that somebody could buy the title of Dr from a Danish university). We Swedes too expect other countries to function as "they should" and feel very scandalized if some Swedish company abroad has tried to make business "as the locals do". And of course it is embarrassing that Swedish authorities again and again get caught in being naive in international relations. For instance: why on earth should we have a bridge to Denmark? Nothing good has come with it, it only cost way more than prospected (naive again!), and stolen goods goes out, and forbidden goods comes in...
I think the trust thing might be a bit tied to the danish directness. I lived at a collegium with a lot of people including foreiners. There was an english guy how, when he tried danish food, always said that he liked it. We found out that he did not like a lot of it. Some people also said that he kind of spoke in riddles. It all just came down to him trying to be polite in the ways that he knew of by letting people down gently. But to the danes living there, it just ment that we would not know(trust) that he would be honest if there was a "right/wrong" answer.
Yeah, we have gotten used to it, but we really don’t like to be that direct and to us “Anglo” culture people there’s a tight line between direct and impolite. However, I see now how it’s quite the opposite here 😊🇩🇰
@@RobeTrotting it is bizarre to me that in this case being polite and impolite is entirely reversed. I saw "my new Danish life" (I think that is what her channel is called) video about the subject, and her American polite way to go about things sound very passively aggressive to my ears. Also as you have talked about on your channel, "how are you" as a greeting seems so false. Good thing you guys can explain it all to us so we don't go around thinking we are being insulted, when people are actually doing their best to be polite to us. 😅
When I tell this story to my "provincial" friends and family, they look very sceptical - to say the least. They don't call me a liar, but .... Well, it was in Copenhagen, so ... hm hm.. Good for them, as I've got witnesses, and there's a police report: I married a foreigner, gave birth to a son in April 1998, and 4 month later I'm ready for an extended visit to the hairdresser. We lived "on the lakes" in Copenhagen, so Dad was strolling the pram around, while I was tied up in curlers - across the lake. Now then, the weather is lousy, Dad's fed up with walking, baby is sleeping in pram, I'm almost done, so he parks pram in Øster Farimagsgade, right outside the windows, where he can keep an eye - did I mention he's foreign 🙄- and he falls down on a chair and looks at magasines. THEN the door to the salon is practically kicked up, and as I remember it, as motorcycle cop drowe in through the door. "Who owns that pram?" and that was not our normal kind, polite police officer. He's whole demeanur loudly said: Don't mess with me - AT ALL "It's mine" I answer, seing him though the mirror, can't turn, I'm paralyzed! "How old is the baby?" "He's 3 and a half month" "Can I have a look?" "Sure!" (thinking now you'll meet the healthiest, prettiest, cleverest baby in the whole world) And while he looks in the pram (his bike is parked next to it - that's how I KNOW he didn't actually DRIVE into the room 😉 - just felt like it) the rest of us have just enough time to take breath, and look at each other as huge questionsmarks.... Of course the officers sences our bewilderment - and also knows himself to be in atypical situation, showing very weird behaviour, so he "stacato" explains him self: "A blue pram with a 5 weeks old boy has been taken (please note: taken, not stolen) from outside a shop, two blocks down the street. Your pram's wheels are the wrong colour, but I had to check" ... oh hsit... like in fåking, terrible, awfull hsit!! In this hsit, I notice my foreign husband, and I now know our son will never be sleeping outside, and I know that even the US and Russian defence ministeries together, wouldn't be able to spin this one to "my" (read: Denmark's) advantage! But this is Denmark! On the walk home I lecture about "stolen" prams, who takes them, how they are found again. And I play with open cards: I tell him about Basse in 1966! My husband is a man of the world (I did mention foreigner?), so he doesn't really listen... He's counting police! Yah, I can see the official cars, but he's got an eye for the "civilians". OMG, we didn't even know, that many were at work at the same time! We're home 20 minuttes later, turn on the local news, and the boy was found within 40 minuttes from disappearance. Almost as sweet as that, was that my theory was confirmed: the baby was moaning, a mentally challenged woman (who perhaps has been denied her own kids?) too quickly takes pitty on the baby - and takes it for a stroll, with the best intentions. Horrorfying, yes! What are we to do? Lock up, lock in and lock out? Or trust each other, and take the chance? And remember Basse! Loooong comment - did anybody bother? Then: Respect!
Nice video. Your focus on the 'common good' is really interesting. In contrast to that, I just saw a video of a preacher in some church here in America, scolding his parishioners for not yet giving him a watch he had asked for last Christmas...
Someone on Quora asked: why are Danes so afraid of the authorities? Why do they always obey the authorities? It is sad that some people can not think of any other reason than fear to obey the law.
I don’t think Danes fear authority at all. I sure don’t. I think we respect authority because we expect said authority to behave towards us in a fair and decent manner.
@@julianneheindorf5757 In many other countries they feel sure they can talk or buy themselves out of a pinch, if they get caught breaking the rules. Or their uncle has helpful relations, if their father hasn't. And so the crime is covered up. But they don't come from a society where one well-known crime ruins their whole future, whoever your relatives are.
@@RobeTrotting although it's been a while since I saw it and I seem to remember a few things that I didn't quite agree with, I'll strongly support this suggestion.
Probably the most divided country ive ever seen but ok.. I dont like my caretakers, my family is split, I have no wife or kids, our females are marrying fo reigners etc. Our entire structure is just falling apart, there was an economic report back in 2019 that everyone just conveniently ignored..
Probably the most divided country ive ever seen but ok.. I dont like my caretakers, my family is split, I have no wife or kids, our females are marrying fo reigners etc. Our entire structure is just falling apart, there was an economic report back in 2019 that everyone just conveniently ignored..
Probably the most divided country ive ever seen but ok.. I dont like my caretakers, my family is split, I have no wife or kids, our females are marrying fo reigners etc. Our entire structure is just falling apart, there was an economic report back in 2019 that everyone just conveniently ignored..
Rigtig god video - Gode eksempler. Et motto jeg selv benytter samt lære mine børn: “Hvis blot du taler sandt, skal du aldrig huske hvad du har sagt”. Meningen med dette motto, er helt simpelt: Frihed. Frihed til at skabe tillid omkring dig selv (som person). Men også at lære at have tillid til din omverden. Keep up the good work ❤
Great video! I really want to visit the US, but as a dane I feel abit stressed out by the opposite culture about trust. I guess it really depends on where you choose to go. I'm considering visiting one of the midwestern states since that seems a little closer to the culture at home rather than NY or LA fx.
You should! There are small towns with a more laid back way of living all over the country, so you wanted to do a hybrid and visit a big city or two and then do some slow travel in some small towns. So many options - I hope you make the trip though :)
I'm not sure about the Midwest, but I heard it's similar to the south with "southern hospitality" being people are just friendly, but don't really mean it. But I think in general the more small town a place is the friendlier they are because of the need to rely on the community and less tolerance there is, in that they don't trust outsiders easily. I'm from New York City, so a little bit biased. But I think we have the most straight-forward culture in all of United States and the most likely to have a conversation with a stranger. But that might be too forward for Danish culture. But in general, the rest of the country tends to lean more towards the American politeness, that is hard to read. New Yorkers will be honest, but I think only some of us are nice.
It's not so bad as you may think, and as you say it varies hugely across the states and from rural to urban areas. I'm half Danish, raised by a very trusting Danish mom (who made me very trusting too), but grew up mostly in America -- and here the news is all about selling the idea that there are murderers abs muggers everywhere. No, there aren't. The bigger threat is paranoid people than those very rare things that they're paranoid about.
I think an important aspect of why we trust "the government" (even if many are still skeptical of government, especially if you've followed politics the past 2 or 3 years) is that no matter how dire the problems, there always seems to be *something done* about it politically. There's always someone, or some party, who you can politically align yourself with, who will fight your battle, your issue, your cause. And that it is actually realistic you can make headway on it. Unlike in the US where lobbyists and money raw pragmatism rules everything.
Case in point: when buying small items from the classified ads in Denmark, sellers often offer to leave the item in their garage or shed or such, for you to pick up anytime and transfer money on pickup.
Trusting others and being trustworthy is integral to the Scandinavian societies. And remembering that people are raised to do that is very much key to understanding things about the Scandinavian countries. The politics and the politicians. The happiness. The lack of litter. Sadly, becoming part of the Danish "trust network" is often hard for immigrants. Are they raised with similar expectations? Can I person who is not speaking perfect Danish be trusted? Would i trust a stranger coming up to me who spoke English as much as I would trust him/her if she spoke fluent Danish? I am afraid the answer is "likely not". I think this is the true secret of Scandinavian society : you have the trust of strangers by default. And you are raised to live up to that responsibility. As an immigrant you mainly have to make do with the trust of the people you know.
but it does make sense as to why the trust is lower on immigrants and that would be because it is very unlikely for immigrants to have been raised with the same values and principles as people from Scandinavia, it's the sad reality that cultures are just that different around the world that it will affect immigrants in any country a d isn't exclusive to a single nation, just that the way they shape differs from country to country.
@@pleasedontkillme1185 As apart of an immigrant family in US, there is definitely so much pressure to assimilate and we're in a very diverse country. I can't imagine the increased pressure living in Denmark, with much less diversity. It must be very hard on people who look different, looking to build a new life in Denmark. I would like to encourage you and others to not look at "it's the sad reality that cultures are just different around the world". I think the authors and this video shows it's wonderful that it's different. To learn about Danish culture as another unique culture on our blue planet is fascinating. It's more sad more people aren't open to embracing the differences in our world.
@@TheTsl5032 I'm not saying it's sad that cultures are different but more so that it can cause it to be harder for people to feel welcome in a new country they have moved to, if you feel me? Like for the example for Denmark being that people are more open/trust someone more that speaks fluently danish than someone speaking English because they are a foreigner and thus haven't grown up with the danish culture, makes people a bit more cautious.
A lot of people who don't like immigrants have adopted that point of view after seeing people from other cultures who arrive in Danish society go against the high trust model. When you see someone who is actively damaging the foundation that you and yours work hard to keep in order, it is unfortunately completely natural to assume that those which do not partake (or go against the norms) are a direct detriment. It's not necessarily about racism and it is not necessarily a view born from stupidity or narrow-mindedness, it can just as well be a symptom of seeing something, once or many times, which you know is harmful to society and by extension, harmful to you and everyone else. Of course some blindly assume that foreigners either can't or won't partake in society, which is definitely not true. But in this case a few bad apples sadly do go a long way towards tainting the whole crop.
True - but Denmark had bad apples before a single immigrant, refugee, or asylum seeker arrived and if we all went home, there would still be bad apples and the economy would take a major hit (there's a worker shortage WITH us haha).
If you want to know something about the danish soul, you should read the works and the life and times of Robert Storm Petersen (Storm P). He is the essence of danishness.
I would say in some areas the trust has become less. As with nurses/domestic help on a homevisit. In the 1980s and 90s it was common that you would have the same person helping you for several years as retired person. So that person became a good friend to the elderly and to the family. Today a lot of agencies make sure the domestic help doesn't live in the same area (officially so that the domestic worker doesn't work for free in his/hers spare time). As well as less frequent visits and sometimes not by the same person each time. So the trust between nurses/domestic help and the citizen has gone down.
well you can add the police and politicians the trust is way down too... but that's only because they prove they are not trustworthy... and also in the Jobcenter/Sagsbehandler the trust is just gone...
some people would say it´s gone and the people that stays and pays 50% in tax are fools vores velfærdssamfund forsvandt da vi fik minimalstat for små 20 år siden skatten forsvandt bare ikke
@@Hansen710 would say yes it's a light version of what there was in the 80s. It's still there though. And some misused the system. Like those who did go on higher education for 10-20 years. I do get you got the SU-klippekort
Yes! Great video about a never ending talk of trust which is very much the glue we cannot take for granted all the time . but until we are staring at the hopeless naivity, trust seems very much to be SO important in the relationships and the ongoing shaping of society.- Another thing .. if there had been time to talk about it.. is that RESPECT is not necessary something any of us in this country can take for granted. It has to be earned. And this also has something to do with trust.
I’ve heard that the high trust levels in Scandinavia can be traced back to ancient times where Scandinavians would be hired as lifeguards in Ancient Greece. I’ve also heard a hypothesis that the high trust levels are a result of the hash Nordic climate where people needed to be able to rely on each other for survival.
You're likely thinking of the Varangian Guard, which was during the time of the Eastern Roman Empire (AKA Byzantine Empire). They were indeed considered very trustworthy.
@@RobeTrotting i think it's a mix of many different things, like trust in the government, trust the people next door, trust teachers, doctors, low crime rate, low corruption, high minimum pay for "low skilled work" and so on... if u take just 1 part but not others, then it dont work, but when 100 little things all line up, it has a big impact...
Your friend here has grasped something really important: predictability, credibility, transparency, honesty; but also tolerance, compassion/empathy and grace. All old knightly virtues that will return to you when honestly practiced. 6PM is 5.55PM, so before 6PM, is your time more precious/important than mine. When everyone arrives on time, it probably gives more time at the end and maybe a Fyraftensakord (when we finish the agreed work for today, we can go home, no matter how early it may be)
I've been in the hospital for a bit more than two weeks now (for a long list of examinations) and I've had no anxiety or fear of just leaving my laptop, cellphone or wallet in my unlocked room when away for examinations or walks. Not even when those examinations took 5+ hours.
Denmark here: About money and ourselves/ family vs. society/ government. My mother (in her 70's) as example: There are certain extras (money) that she is entitled to and they could benefit her, yet she doesn't apply for them: _"Yes I would like it, but I don't NEED it, I can make do without it. It will be of more benefit to our society."_ *Don't grab all you can, and only accept what you need.* *Trust in selling:* I did the same a couple of times: I sold some used item, the buyer came but had forgotten money or didn't have small change, I just said _"pass by with the money next week, no problem"_ - and it never was a problem, they came with the money.
In the old, pagan religion, honour was extremely important. Your word was everything and it was believed that lying, breaking your word, or stealing from your own people would permanently affect your luck, or hamingja.
Do you have any non-white friends in Denmark? I love your videos, you guys present information in a very well rounded, respectful, and pleasant way! Keep it up! But I'm curious about what the experience is like, if you look like a obvious foreigner? As I can't change the color of my skin, I would be curious if that can effect my experience in Denmark.
That would be an interesting topic to cover - we have several non-white friends that are both Danish and foreigners. Honestly, Derek is mostly German and Polish in heritage so he kind of blends in enough but Mike has Italian and Irish heritage and has randomly been asked "what are you?" more than a couple of times, sometimes followed by "but where are you from?" if he answers by saying he's American on that he lives in Denmark.
We are raised with the attitude of trust everyone you meet, until they disapoint you. In that way you get many good experiences and very few bad. Besides we all know each other, or if not, we have a common friend or maybe we are related in some way. We all come from Harald Bluetooth 😄
I don’t think we trust each other more than others but people usually have a specific set of friends and oftentimes do not let others into that circle. It takes a long time to reach actual trusting others. On the macro level I agree on the trust in expert systems, authorities in general and we don’t walk out the door doubting the motives of strangers. Those are just some thoughts.
For sure, this conversation definitely shined a light on other cultural traits. Thinking of them as a matter of trust, or through that lens really unlocked a lot of new perspectives.
Makes life easier overall, but you can get burned as well, and i have my fair share of people doing me wrong, but in my opinion it’s not worth spending time sobbing over, move along forget and forgive, but not letting em do you wrong again
Yes. I think the video made Danes look a bit naïve, which is certainly not the case. But the polarity is switched. If you do betray the trust, or in other ways tread outside certain norms for civilised behaviour, you may well find yourself an outcast, possibly for ever. I was at the Field's mall with my daughter on that terrible day not so long ago, and the amount of trust, and the mutual helpfulness, between ordinary people who were complete strangers, was overwhelming (and very positive), but there also was a consensus of immense disgust towards the - at that time "unknown" - shooter. Now, I actually pity the guy, at least a little, but he will not have a normal life for a very long time, if ever. And I'm sure that in Copenhagen, or on Amager at least, _everyone_ knows who he is. That event also showed how efficient the police and other authorities are. I think there was a policeman or -woman, armed with H&K MP5 submachinegun for every 200 m or so, and even though they were strongly focused on their task, they were all quite relaxed, highly professional, and very helpful and friendly when approached and asked for help or information. I think that is also a good example of how there is a strong sense of initial implicit trust and respect - in a human sense - between Danish authorities and citizens. When people were finally able to be "evacuated" from the sealed off area - with the Metro, which had two lines repurposed just for this task (another example of either creative thinking or eminent advance planning on part of the police management) - everything went nice and smooth, no pushing or panic, just literally thousands of people waiting patiently for their turn to enter the densely packed trains, while smalltalking among each other. I still remember two people next to us in the crowd walking to the station; one said: "Nu mangler det bare at det begynder at regne", to which the other deadpanned the hilariously punny reply: "Ja det ville da være dråben..." I saw a few very upset, worried and crying people that evening (and I saw people, who were obviously complete strangers to them, comfort them with soothing words and warm hugs), but I saw many more smiles, and I didn't see _one_ _single_ self-important angry person showing a negative attitude to the situation or other people. I can't say if this was a specifically Danish way to react, or if this happens with humans everywhere given a serious and acute crisis, but I will say that I had my belief in humanity thoroughly reaffirmed that day.
I was on the bus the other day, and these two girls sat beside me. One absolutely wasted as they get, and the other tipsy at worst, but totally calm both of them. I had my hearphones on. I could see the tipsy one look at me, but I just didn't really bothered to look back, as I get recognized often, so thought it might just have been one of those cases. A bit after, she touches me, and I twitch, but take one earpod out, and she asks for water. Luckily I had an extra bottle of water, so I gave one, but I was so confused because in all honesty they didn't know what was in that bottle, but was so sure I at least didn't mess with it even though it was opened beforehand, and gave the wasted one the water because she needed it.
Years ago, I went to the Viking Museum in Roskilde. I saw a poster there, but didn't buy it because I had no room. When I got back to the US, I emailed them to order it. They sent it to me and asked me to pay them later. I did send them the money, but I was surprised that they had trusted me to pay after I received the poster.
The biggest and most important reason why danes trust each other (and also used to have a much more trust-based society) is because of ethnic homogeneity. Since the 80's we've seen a huge rise of non western people migrating into Denmark. With that, higher crime, rapes and murder has seen a significant rise. This of course, has influenced our trust and safety, which is why you sadly dont see stuff like having babies outside in the bigger cities anymore. If you want anything that reminds you of the trust society Denmark once was, you'd have to go to the countryside.
Interesting! However, there is a flip side (as there often is). While Danes do trust each other an incredibly high amount, that same level of trust is often not extended to expats living in Denmark. Some trust, but not the same. If you live rurally, the difference is even bigger and you will find a high level of distrust toward foreigners. Not just with big issues, but with all the small issues of daily life too. If I had to characterize it, I would say that Denmark is a highly functional, unified and homogenous social unit that is difficult for an outsider to join, be part of, and receive the same courtesies of. Especially if you live outside the cities and in areas where foreigners are uncommon, and you may be the only foreigner your neighbours know. Anyway, I always enjoy your videos! I just find that so often they don't apply to my experience in rural Denmark (5 years). E.g. "Most people speak English in our everyday lives and at work" (in rural Denmark it is the opposite), LGBTQ+ and racial tolerance (not always so rosy out in the sticks! As an LGBTQ+ person myself I've faced slurs numerous times) etc etc. Even though you have so many wonderful videos on so many topics, sometimes I feel like they are really all videos about Copenhagen rather than all of Denmark. Would love to see a video on Danish rural life! Danish rural life has so many problems not present in the cities, but on the upside it also has so much natural beauty, wildlife, tranquillity and hygge. I know you live in the city but maybe you have a friend you could do an interview with (?).
Hi guys! Just wanted to say hi here! I was a bit "sad" that I didn't see you last year at pride parade in Copenhagen! So this year, when I saw you, I got quite excited! 😆 And I think I might have creeped out Derek a bit! I am so sorry Derek, if I did! 😆❤️ But I got a tiny talk with Mike, so I hope he explained, that I wasn't (too) crazy! 😂😂😜 I was the lady trying to dress as Frida Kahlo 😆 with a red flower skirt and white flowers in my hair 😄 Just wanted to say hi in here! And also tell you: I love your videos! I think you are educating danes about Danes! I love it! You are VERY kind about Denmark! Maybe you guys are sometimes a bit too kind to us! 😄❤️❤️ But honestly I really like getting the differences explained! Some things I know already, and some things are eye openers! I think it's really great! Maybe us Danes just love watching these types of videos about our selves! 😆 But also we are very influenced by America today, so I really think it's healthy and great to see these differences and likenesses.. Thanks for your channel! 👍👍❤️😄 Love from Marie
A large influx of people from incompatible cultures has changed the general level of trust - or, you might say, increased the trust level within defined groups sharing common values.
One factor that I think is not mentioned in the video, which certainly plays a large part in the "trust-levels" of Danish society (and Scandinavian societies as a whole) is the fact, that Denmark is a really small country with, historically, a very homogenous population. This homogeneity obviously extend beyond merely looking similar. It means that, by-and-large, people are brought up with similar values and live in similar situations, which creates a society-level shared idea of right/wrong and the values by which to adhere when interacting with other people. A country like the US is so diverse, both geographically and culturally, that such homogeneity, and thus the trust it creates, is virtually impossible to have.
In economics that would be described as "decreased transactional costs" ie you don´t have to put effort/ money in hedging against being treated fraudulently. In Denmark you dont have to hedge because in the end/ final analysis the legal system is quite reliable and un-corruptible and will make you get your due. (Which in turn hinges on the state apparatus being uncorruptible which has historical reasons).
The baby you are talking about was in a foster home for four days. She was usually breastfed and didn't eat or drink much during those four days. She was completely hoarse when she was returned after four days of crying. The mother was sitting within eye sight RIGHT on the other side of the window. I remember that case quite vividly. The mother was visiting her BF (maybe ex) who was the father of the child. That was probably the last time she did that. The culture differences seemed very alien to me when I visited the US. I don't thin I'll every do that again. I don't feel safe or trust that I (foreigner, woman, old) would be treated fair if I didn't bribe the authorities.
The same day she was arested one of the US morning tv shows was in Copenhagen(I mean it was ABC) and actually reported about the babies out side stores.I mean it was in 95
The trust level thing is funny, My boyfriend is from the UK and i find him kind of paranoid compared to my fellow danes and myself hehe. He just seems to think; any stranger is probably out to get you. Me on the other hand being used to things like often not locking doors and leaving expensive bikes outside, occationally also unlocked, cause I'm used to it being fine to do so
You reap what you sow, trust people and you will be trusted in return. Even if it is naive, I at least find it to work. So far I've lost less by trusting, than by distrusting people. At the very least, it is less exhaustive.
I'm a dane, and we always dry our clothes on the clothes line outside, because why not, right? No need for a dryer. I remember a british friend of mine telling me her dryer had broken and i said "Well, just use a clothes line outside and that's problem solved". Apparently, in her area, getting your clothes stolen off of your clothes line is a worry that people have, and i was not prepared for that.
@@RobeTrotting yeah but it also sucks, I used to be very trusting (not naive) but when people backstab you enough you simply just stop... but it feels "bad/wrong" to not trust people anymore... especially now that you know how trusting danes are in general.
You should try looking into stavnsbåndet. If you want to see hierarchical system, that, I think, is he purest form northern Europe has seen at any point in the past 1000 years. It was basically slavery and it lasted for over 70 years, from 1733 to 1800. Basically this meant that the peasants were owned by the local lord and torture was a perfectly reasonable thing to exercise at every turn and it was and people died. Lots of them. Arguably this might be the reason why figures such as Grundtvig (the founding father of unionisation in Denmark, you might say. And by unions I mean the club/society tendencies, not necessarily labor unions though that was a direct consequence) became as popular as they did. Also giant fan of the random lone pram in the background XD
Researching a bit more about stavnsbåndet and it seems like something that would be cool to take a deep dive on! And that pram, WOW - didn't even realize it until we had the video edited and noticed it haha. Couldn't have planned something like that if we tried! LOL
@@RobeTrotting I encourage it, it is one of my favorit topics. It is almost as corrupt as the Estrup Government which lasted from 1875 to 1894, because the king refused to sign the papers allowing for the the passage of power to the winning party. Basically for just short of 20 years, Denmark was a dictatorship. The years leading up to and basically all of the 1800's were wild. The fact that you did not angle the camera on purpose to get the pram in the picture just makes it even better XD
I found a mobile phone fiercely ringing in a parking lot in Malmoe. Nobody around. I couldn't reply, as it was locked somehow. I took it home to Lund, try to get around the problem, found the number from which the call came (obviously multiple calls) - called up from my phone and explained the situation. She was very nice. I gave my name and phone-number. She oviously was the partner as I had assume, and she had been worried, just as I had thought. Made an appointment to meet up, in the middle of the next day, in the middle of Lund, I'm an elderly lady. We met, I handed over the phone, said a few words of how it came I had found it. We spoke English, he sounded lika a native English speaker. I expected he'd present himself with his name and would have said thanks - but he only said "OK!" and vanished. Strange. His behaviour was so odd that I started to think: what if he wasn't the rightful owner of the phone! I could have given the phone to the police with less bother for me, but this arrangement was less bother for him...
Idk for me as a Dane the trust thing, as I see it/hear/experience it, has for the last 10, 20, 40 years, been on a retreat, mainly for the trust in our coverment/in the system!
I'm sorry but the kind stranger doesn't live everywhere. For 6 months I used crutches and it was hell to take the bus in Copenhagen and again and again nobody gave me a seat. People suddenly got blind and didn't see me. I had to stop taking the bus, because it was to hard and painful because people wouldn't help. NowmI live in Aalborg in Jutland and people are more helpful. I wish it wasn't like that.
Dane here. Im sorry you cant expect just because u have crutches, are Old or something else to get a Seat on a bus. its not because people are mean. I cant really explain it. Also many have invissible pains to deal with and they stand up on the bus and so on. U cant just own that Seat. Its nice to get one, but cant expect it to be “this i how we do it, because i have cruthes”. Their is not a name on the Seat that says “its mine because..”. I like it being if their is a Seat take it, if not u have to stand up like everyone else. U cant just have it. And ive met a lot if crumpy Old mean people Force people, also me to give up their Seat like its their own private chair from Home. Its not how the society works.. at least what i Think.
Economic stability, somewhat of a security of living income in case of illness, pebsions etc.makes the crime rates much lower than in the US. Ristrictive gunlaws makes random shootings (singular and mass) a VERY rare occurence,although the tragic case at Fields is a newer one. I think it all cobtributes to us not fearing the world. As an ex-pat I remember American media as very fear-mongeringand the sheer amount of guns was... insane. It seems like fewer Danesare "scared of their own shadow" and it makes a huge difference.
well when you talk about trust today you have to remember the story behind it, starting out as a monarchy , the king turning over power to first a couple of parties and later to folketinget, unions fighting for workers rights, a system that has changed and adapted over the years. denmark being largely of the same type of people with 10 or 15 % of other kinds of people you do see deebates and arguments about racism and exclusion but i really dont know how different it is from other countries. i would say things are also very different from the countryside to big cities but maybe not as big as in larger countries with cities with 10s of millions of people. imo when i speak with other danes i dont really think they are very trusting ( mostly concerning the system and politicians) or happier than other people or friendlier than other people , but of course its always easier from someone coming in from the outside to spot. but basicly i think that danes is always saying theres something rotten in the state of denmark , everything is going to hell , things was much better in the good old days etc. or at least we /they have as long as i lived. but many danes also has this now calm down take it easy and let see how it is tomorrow or in danish klap lige hesten / klap lige farmor.
The thing about the accidental tax return reminds me of what I’ve just learned about welfare systems. The American one is liberal social security is something you buy it’s your responsibility. The Danish one is the social democratic one where it’s the governments duty and that is financed through taxes. There is also a conservative version that you for example will find in Germany where it’s your family or friends duty to support you and if you are without a job and don’t have any that can support you you can maybe get help from the church
ok for a starter.....im pretty sure that walkingaround with that knife is illigal......the downside to trust, one exsample if the taxfaut. theres alot of trust in the system too. and that has been taken advantage off
I ve though about this topic a lot since i moved away from Argentina 8 years ago, and apart from the cultural history that Danes share, it s worth mentioning that when you have such high salaries for such a long period of time, you get used to being safe. So stealing never even crosses your mind. But when you ve lived and seen and grown up surrounded by poverty and lack and corruption, and you have not seen anything else, you operate from a state of survival. It would be a completely different society if for 10 years they had poverty. You would start seeing the same trustworthy people change 100%. So you never truly know a person (or a society) until there is a terrible situation to face. Unfortunately Argentina (as well as many other societies) has had very bad experiences with "the system" and you have to protect yourself from it. I don t know if there s a way to come back from such deep trauma.
This was interesting. The whole thing about predictability could perhaps explain the caution or even distrust many Danes have towards foreigners from cultures very different from ours. I myself am guilty of that. It’s not racism because it has nothing to do with skin color or facial features, it’s a culture thing. Still there are some universal values that overrides that sense of caution, like how children especially babies are precious and must be protected. So if you are at a playground with a toddler and a sleeping baby in a pram and your toddler needs to use the toilet, I wouldn’t hesitate to ask a woman or family present, regardless of ethnicity, if they would please keep an eye on the pram while I take my toddler peeing.
Remember denmark is a small country. If word gets around and it will that you can't be trusted you are kinda sidelined in danish society. So if you want to be part you have to show trust. I have lived in spain germany and philippines and i would trust any dane more than anyone ive met past 10 years. Apart from many danes living abroad. I have found out the reason many have moved from denmark is they have been sidelined. They simply don't fit in anymore. Its like 70 percent of the danes i have met past 10 years since leaving denmark
som dansker må jeg sige at hollændere ved man hvor man har. danskere vil jeg ik sige man kommer godt afsted med at stole på, medmindre man kan lide og trække det korte strå. hollænderne tog også pænere mod mig end danskere gør nye steder og der føler jeg mig egentlig mere hjemme end i dk (hvis vi skal snakke om danske værdier, så betyder mange af de værdier mere for hollændere end de gør for danskere nu om dage).. jeg har også boet i tyskland og spanien og der giver jeg di ret, medmindre vi snakker "Ordnung muss sein" der skal være styr på tingene uanset om de så ødelægger alt for dem selv og andre
and yet strangely enough, for all our level playing fields, and our trust in each other ..we are 'cold and indifferent to strangers' - go figure?! 🤔🤣 hello from Hundested 🌸🌱
Wish this concept of trust applied to car drivers in 🇩🇰 I CAN trust other danish drivers to tailgate, speed over the limit and not have any regard for other drivers. Other than that driving it’s fantastic in Denmark.
I personally blame German automakers for that, and I know I'm not the only one who thinks so. Okay, I admit not having made a systematic data collection and analysis, and there are exceptions, but in a significant number of cases, when I get tailgated on the motorway, the car is German-made, with Audi making up the largest number, followed by BMW, and then Mercedes. I wonder if there's something in the upholstery, like a fire retardant or maybe a leather tanning agent, that affects the brain of many Danish drivers, and causes rotten driving.
so it´s you guy´s thats blocking the traffic 🤣 i do drive german, but non of those brands and those brands are normally not fast anuff to tailgate me 😆 to be fair in dk your kind can spend time in the left lane in dk, but if you do that in germany the cars do more then tailgate you. and in most other countrys in south europe people will make room for them self to pass you.
@@Hansen710 If I am passing a group of trucks and going at the speed limit (at least! Unless there are cars ahead passing at slower speed, which often happens) you have no fucking business at the rear end of my car, you just keep at a safe distance, or get off the road, scrap your car, hand in your license and take a hike on foot, as you obviously can't be entrusted with wheels.
As a dane I have gotten access to another persons appartment to look after some cats. Because that person trusted me to not steal or do other bad things
Don't be too trusting .....in Denmark we have different levels of trust. A small People that was even smaller in the past had a lot of social control and your reputation was important if you wanted to act with people more than once. You got conventions of acceptable behavior you learned from Childhood. And this has probably been similar in most of Scandinavia. In a city like Copenhagen which was bigger and more anonymous, you had different levels of trust. It has historical roots but today it works as a good lubricant for daily business as you can generally predict what to expect....but still it is wise to be a bit prudent and read the situation. Social control and moral compass are not as strong as in the past. Another complication is an influx of cultures with very different moral standards about honesty.
I cannot stand people who do not talk straight. The dansing around leads me to believe something is very wrong. Communicate clearly and to the point. Thats a big culture thing for me. And sometimes it has made me distrust foreigners when I did not have to.
I wonder how many people who isnt from Denmark who would freak while watching this, because of the “abandent” stroller in the background 😂😆🤔🤭😎 sorry couldnt help it 😂
Betraying the trust of someone is posibly one of the worst things you can do in Denmark - and it extends to the rest of Danish Society. Examples: 1: A danish high-school graduate was applying to a university in Denmark. His GPA was not high enough to get in based on the GPA alone (there is a whole interview process if you GPA isn't high enough...), so he decided to change some numbers on his exam papers using Photoshop. What he did not know was that all danish high-school diplomas are immediately acessible to the university once you apply because they are uploaded to the same system that handles, banks, healthcare, loans, police records etc. The guy was immediately exposed as a fraud within hours (uploading exam papers manually instead of just letting the application form fetch your papers from the central database is a red flag in itself). The guy had to serve a short sentence for forgery and was barred from applying to any Danish university again. Oh and excluding someone from a friend group after 20 years of friendship because they said they'd show up at a house party, but didn't is perfectly understandable unless they had a last-minute excuse that checked out.
You mention Scandinavia in general in the video when it comes to trust, and Sweden are very much like Denmark in that regard. That trust is being eroded in some quarters, though, as for example our social welfare system is taken advantage of by people from "non-skiing nations" (as the euphemism goes). Several cases have gone to court in recent years, where entire families have been benefiting from one family member faking a disability, and others in that family have been reimbursed as care-givers (instead of hiring a nurse). It's sad, because it feeds into the xenopohobia and thus affects honest immigrants, too. One reason Swedes were (are?) regarded as honest but a bit stupid in the US is this very trust you mention, which resulted in Swedish immigrants being taken advantage of. Coming from a trust-based rural society to a "dog eat dog" setting like the US over a century ago must've been a shock.
I love the example with a housemaid/Gardner who steals. In a small Danish society something like that would be known by many people quickly, so it would have immediate consequences.
Punctuality is extremely important in Denmark. You be there and I will be there everybody is good. Dont waste my time and I dont waste yours. People are not meant to be on standby for other people. I f my boss was late to a meeting I would scold him for being late and wasting my time. He knows he is wasting my time and he had messed up my work plan. Just be timely and everybody is good.
I lost my wallet in Lidl,, 2 days after my mailman told me he had drop'd it in my mailbox. Nice people, had put in the publis mailbox. Like good old days-.
High trust and low corruption goes hand in hand - and high trust pays off. It is much cheaper to trust than control, e.g. the Police can focus on important stuff as the know 99% behaves in a good way.
Trust in the government yes, although comeplely misplaced in my opinion. Trust in eachother? No, this is absolutely not the case my experience. Im from here and lived in DK all my life. We have less crime then other places yes, but not much trust tbh. People are mean muggin' eachother left and right, especially if you dont look scandinavian, people WILL stare at you and not in a nice way. Many of these wonderful sentiments I simply dont find to be the case no more.. I feel like people are describing Denmark like it perhaps was in the 90s or the 2000s and just repeating some fairytale. Let me remind everyone that an ice cream that was 18 kr not so long ago is 39 kr today and peoples salery are pretty much the same. Butter 35 kr and 1 liter of milk is 16 kr.. 😅😅. The fact that the danes has trust left is impressive in itself although I find it somewhat untrue if you dont look like you belong.
You could say, in a way, that "cancel culture" exists in Denmark. But it is targeted at people who break the law? Not at political correctness, but at illegal behaviour. We all trust each other to educate, or correct, behaviour when people break the rules. It doesn't have to be verbal, but try crossing a clear road while the light is red. You will get lots of disapproving looks. Sometimes people will even speak up. It's the rules. And we incorporate a lot of social constructs into to the rules, and thereby giving permission to disapprove of people that don't follow those rules. Because they are in ink, rather than just opinions. Like how to treat a flag, etc.
Yeah, there's a lot of passive aggressive or silent judging for sure haha. I wouldn't really call that cancel culture though - I think that term gets thrown around a lot, but people be held to account when they break a law isn't really "cancel culture" in my opinion.
Regarding getting a wrong tax refund, your not entitled to! Danes know that the IRS (Told & Skat) will find out, and get "our" money back (most of the time), one way or the other 😎. So there's no point in keeping them. Although most will return it, because it's the right thing to do, regardless 😊 We trust each other, until there's a reason not to 😀!!
I think this video suffered badly from clumsy editing. At one point Sam suddenly says "fast forward about x-hundred years...", and it made absolutely no sense, I guess because of some unusually heavyhanded cutting of what he said up to that point. :-(
I take that you guys are somewhat upper class. Have you ever considered doing homeless and people in the lower bracket here in Denmark. Compared to the US and doing it properly? Like not just what you get from statistics but go down to the spot in Vesterbro next to the central station and speak to the people? You have a very shallow notion of Denmark still.
I think that would be really interesting and we live in Vesterbro, I’d be a little worried about doing it in a way that isn’t exploitative. Also, I worry about our Danish skills and how to compare it to the States without a plan to go back in the same time period… hmmm 🤔 it’s a worthy topic for sure. Need to mull it over a bit.
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Things That Would Horrify Danes About America: ua-cam.com/video/oWo1GaYiAaQ/v-deo.html
You can listen to the What The Denmark podcast episode about trust on:
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as well as see more episodes via: www.whatthedenmark.com/
Sam here from the video!
First off, thanks Derek for inviting me on! It's always fun to talk about these sorts of things which are confusing/ interesting as a non-Dane in Denmark :)
If anyone here has any follow up questions about trust, then happy to (do my best to) answer them!
In many ways it reminds me of how it felt as a kid growing up in the 70's in the UK. The levels of trust in society back then was much higher, people left babies outside the shops, we roamed around freely to play as kids with no worries about what might happen. I still find the trust levels here in Denmark a wonderful surprise, even after over 2 years of living here - it's very satisfying.
Hey Danny, have to agree as well. We were 80s/90s kids and felt like we had a lot more freedom to run around all day and play without fear and could trust that a neighbor or even stranger would help us if needed.
Not to forget that financial security among citizens affects trust in society. Low poverty rate leads to low need of stealing.
That’s a big part of the societal trust and social compact.
The story with the baby in the pram is such a good example of the culture difference.
The Americans are thinking, I can't believe she would leave her baby out where anyone can just take it.
And the Danes are thinking, I can't believe people in USA steal babies.
Serious question though, why would anyone steal a baby?
I have a baby, and they are a lot of work!
HAHA Great question! Most Americans go out of their way to avoid having a baby (which is harder in some states these days) but I don't think many would steal one!
I don't know why it's so shocking to us to leave one outside - I think it's just the tiniest risk makes us so nervous.
This baby thing is one of the most amazing things I have seen here. It tells a lot about the trust levels here, I find that very inspiring!
Just look at the trolley in the background. Kinda says it All.
Denmark is just a great country in many ways. I am sure its not perfect but it sure is good, really good!
We definitely agree on that! :)
As a starting point we Danes live by the concept “Bonus pater familias” which means: designation of a right thinking, trustworthy person (with a prudent way of acting). bonus pater familias one who acts thoughtfully and responsibly within the Limits of Freedom of Action
A big reason for the trust in the system, is that corruption is pretty much none existing in any part of the society.
Is low corruption a cause of high trust levels or is it a result of high trust? Maybe low corruption and high trust levels both rooted in something entirely different.
@@jesperlett That's like the chicken and the egg 🤷♂️
@@heinedenmark It seems I read your comment wrong. I thought you attributed the trust in the society in general to low corruption. I agree that the trust in the system has much to do with low corruption. Btw, the egg evolved millions of years before the chicken :)
My brother lives in coppenhagen currently and he says danes have told him about 40% of the populace works in or related to the government. It's pretty easy to trust when 1 in 2 people you know is on the inside.
@@TheTsl5032 Good point. But I believe it's more like 30%..
I have followed you for like half a year, and I'd never imagine much you would contribute to my life
Wow, Tim, that is the most incredible comment and compliment! Thank you so much for watching and being part of our community!!! 😀😀😀🇩🇰😀🇩🇰
Great video, a difference in trust that I noticed between Denmark and from other countries there is no stuff outside the stores or they are locked with a chain, so that people don't steal. While here in Denmark there is a lot of stuff outside the store that people technically can just take.
Yes and the roadside stalls, where people are trusted to leave money for the potatoes, strawberries or whatever they sell.
Yeah, but we expect people to be honest and pay for the stuff they take off the racks outside the stores.
I love seeing my home country through your eyes ❤ it always makes me think
So glad to hear that :)
I´m Danish and a mom. I left my baby outside shops and cafés all the time in Copenhagen, BUT I would never have done that in NYC. I think you need to use your common sense. Just because it is safe to do that in Denmark, doesn´t meant that it is safe to do so in NYC
Agreed
Agreed! Wealthy country generally safer, like when you go to a wealthy area generally safer. Context is everything!
Masta Chief agrees
@@TheTsl5032 America is the wealthiest country in the world.
@ tW May make your decisions somewhat more scientific. Crime figures do get published. Strange indicator for crime btw..degree to which babies get stolen? More common is ripdeal fi5t fights ATM machine explosions (popular in Germany at this time, but as it appears performed by Netherlands crooks).
Oh the prams ❤️ My Dutch husband had the biggest scare when we were first dating. We were walking my dog in a local park/woods, and he stops and go "What's that? Should we call the police or something?" I was thoroughly confused until I realised that he was talking about a pram between the trees. People were having a picnic about 100-200 meters away, I told it's probably their kid and they don't want the baby to wake up from the noise of their party. He was very skeptical and it took a bit of back and forth to get him to walk on with me 😂
Same, it was a big shock for us too. Even while editing this video I couldn’t believe how perfect it was that there was a pram in the background unattended 😂
I thought the Dutch was all in on the trust thing.
@@JRBendixenI am as a Dutchie. But I think there is a big difference in city people and country people. And east,west, north or south
I have found there is more trust and honesty here in Croatia than I experience in UK. As an example, one time I needed toner for my printer and found a supplier about 40 minutes drive from me. I went there and they gave me the toner but explained that they are an online shop, they don't have facilities for cash or card payments. They trusted me to take the product home and then order it and pay online.
This is FASCINATING!!!!! Thank you. I will defo listen to the podcast
Don't get me wrong, I think that the trust system in Denmark is great and I have enjoyed it (and contributed to it by doing my part) for quite a few years now, as a foreigner living here. However, I sometimes find myself baffled at how some danes seem to expect the exact same thing abroad. Denmark is the absolute exception in this regard. Most other countries are filled with corruption and sketchiness at all levels in society, like Italy, where I'm from (And it's incredibly hard to fix such a system). So to me, it can come across as being naive to how the world works, in a way that can unfortunately put the person in danger if they find themselves in an environment where things work in more complicated ways. I guess I'm jealous, because I wish more countries learned from Denmark, so I say this with love for both of my countries
I've visited countries where they they think that a Nordic level of high trust, is so stupid, that they cheat on you any time, it just serves you right for being so dumb. Or you being a trustful, been taken as meaning that you want to be taking advantage of, your giving permission to be misused. Like: if something is not locked up, anyone can take it (steal it). If a woman is alone in a bar, she wants to be raped. If you are not exactly controlled, you can cheat in an exam. If the municipality doesn't closely check your economy, you can smartly profit from such support-programs, you are not entitled to.
Actually this difference in cultures makes people "racists" and worse.
The thing is, I as a Dane, see this slowly sadly have been going that direction here as well, over the past 20,40 years. Less and less, trust, honesty, more corruption ect.
Your words pleases and touches me Adele.
Many danes don’t realises that what we have here in Denmark is rather unike, and way above what other countries. Allthough it’s a popular description, our rate of corruption is vertually close to zero. For decades Denmark has been concidered the least corrupt country in the world.
I don’t know, in many ways some danes believe that they can do the same in other countries as we can here. Our freedom of speech is above most other countries, and the security we got from our government is at the top too.
@@kasperkjrsgaard1447 When my parents come to visit me in Dk they are constantly in awe of how well things work here. Yes, Italy has "good" systems too, for most things, giving the illusion that it is possible to do things nice and properly. But then you get proven wrong time and time again. It's exhausting. Never-ending cumbersom burocracy, offices don't aswer the phone, don't help, police can be lazy.. and tons of stupid obstacles and little games you have to avoid or play along with.
It's not easy to be a honest citizen in that environment because you often feel disrespected and cheated. Still we try our best. Despite everything, and maybe exactly because of this way of doing things, Italy has taught me a lot. That you have to insist, make your voice heard and find like-minded people for support.
Sometimes I think it's just part of our culture. But no, it doesn't have to be that way.
Still, I hope danes visiting Italy can make the most of our beautiful culture, places, people, food, while being aware of our challenges, appreciate us for what we have to offer.
@@kasperkjrsgaard1447 From a Swedish perspective I must agree! 😁In many ways Denmark shockingly seems more relaxed, more alcohol, more prostitution, less rules (examples: consumer protection, and cars on the most beautiful beaches), more NATO-wars, ...
But then again suddenly more restricted and stricter (on the crimes which plague us here), proactive strong common sense, less freedom to roam, more hiearchical workplaces, more demanding academic exams (I find it very unlikely that somebody could buy the title of Dr from a Danish university).
We Swedes too expect other countries to function as "they should" and feel very scandalized if some Swedish company abroad has tried to make business "as the locals do".
And of course it is embarrassing that Swedish authorities again and again get caught in being naive in international relations. For instance: why on earth should we have a bridge to Denmark? Nothing good has come with it, it only cost way more than prospected (naive again!), and stolen goods goes out, and forbidden goods comes in...
I think the trust thing might be a bit tied to the danish directness. I lived at a collegium with a lot of people including foreiners. There was an english guy how, when he tried danish food, always said that he liked it. We found out that he did not like a lot of it. Some people also said that he kind of spoke in riddles. It all just came down to him trying to be polite in the ways that he knew of by letting people down gently. But to the danes living there, it just ment that we would not know(trust) that he would be honest if there was a "right/wrong" answer.
Yeah, we have gotten used to it, but we really don’t like to be that direct and to us “Anglo” culture people there’s a tight line between direct and impolite. However, I see now how it’s quite the opposite here 😊🇩🇰
@@RobeTrotting it is bizarre to me that in this case being polite and impolite is entirely reversed.
I saw "my new Danish life" (I think that is what her channel is called) video about the subject, and her American polite way to go about things sound very passively aggressive to my ears.
Also as you have talked about on your channel, "how are you" as a greeting seems so false. Good thing you guys can explain it all to us so we don't go around thinking we are being insulted, when people are actually doing their best to be polite to us. 😅
Spot on. I agree. You can be honest about stuff without being rude.
@@RobeTrotting I agree. I am quite direct but I find danish people to be very rude at times
@@KiwiCatherine perhaps they are rude because they find you offensive?
When I tell this story to my "provincial" friends and family, they look very sceptical - to say the least. They don't call me a liar, but .... Well, it was in Copenhagen, so ... hm hm..
Good for them, as I've got witnesses, and there's a police report:
I married a foreigner, gave birth to a son in April 1998, and 4 month later I'm ready for an extended visit to the hairdresser. We lived "on the lakes" in Copenhagen, so Dad was strolling the pram around, while I was tied up in curlers - across the lake.
Now then, the weather is lousy, Dad's fed up with walking, baby is sleeping in pram, I'm almost done, so he parks pram in Øster Farimagsgade, right outside the windows, where he can keep an eye - did I mention he's foreign 🙄- and he falls down on a chair and looks at magasines.
THEN the door to the salon is practically kicked up, and as I remember it, as motorcycle cop drowe in through the door.
"Who owns that pram?" and that was not our normal kind, polite police officer. He's whole demeanur loudly said: Don't mess with me - AT ALL
"It's mine" I answer, seing him though the mirror, can't turn, I'm paralyzed!
"How old is the baby?"
"He's 3 and a half month"
"Can I have a look?"
"Sure!" (thinking now you'll meet the healthiest, prettiest, cleverest baby in the whole world)
And while he looks in the pram (his bike is parked next to it - that's how I KNOW he didn't actually DRIVE into the room 😉 - just felt like it) the rest of us have just enough time to take breath, and look at each other as huge questionsmarks....
Of course the officers sences our bewilderment - and also knows himself to be in atypical situation, showing very weird behaviour, so he "stacato" explains him self:
"A blue pram with a 5 weeks old boy has been taken (please note: taken, not stolen) from outside a shop, two blocks down the street. Your pram's wheels are the wrong colour, but I had to check"
... oh hsit... like in fåking, terrible, awfull hsit!!
In this hsit, I notice my foreign husband, and I now know our son will never be sleeping outside, and I know that even the US and Russian defence ministeries together, wouldn't be able to spin this one to "my" (read: Denmark's) advantage!
But this is Denmark! On the walk home I lecture about "stolen" prams, who takes them, how they are found again. And I play with open cards: I tell him about Basse in 1966!
My husband is a man of the world (I did mention foreigner?), so he doesn't really listen...
He's counting police! Yah, I can see the official cars, but he's got an eye for the "civilians". OMG, we didn't even know, that many were at work at the same time!
We're home 20 minuttes later, turn on the local news, and the boy was found within 40 minuttes from disappearance.
Almost as sweet as that, was that my theory was confirmed: the baby was moaning, a mentally challenged woman (who perhaps has been denied her own kids?) too quickly takes pitty on the baby - and takes it for a stroll, with the best intentions.
Horrorfying, yes! What are we to do? Lock up, lock in and lock out?
Or trust each other, and take the chance? And remember Basse!
Loooong comment - did anybody bother? Then: Respect!
Thank you!
Nice video.
Your focus on the 'common good' is really interesting. In contrast to that, I just saw a video of a preacher in some church here in America, scolding his parishioners for not yet giving him a watch he had asked for last Christmas...
WOW, that's pretty disturbing for a lot of reasons haha.
Someone on Quora asked: why are Danes so afraid of the authorities? Why do they always obey the authorities? It is sad that some people can not think of any other reason than fear to obey the law.
Yeah, some people just operate with that mindset like everyone and everything is out to get them or rigged against them.
I don’t think Danes fear authority at all. I sure don’t. I think we respect authority because we expect said authority to behave towards us in a fair and decent manner.
@@julianneheindorf5757 In many other countries they feel sure they can talk or buy themselves out of a pinch, if they get caught breaking the rules. Or their uncle has helpful relations, if their father hasn't. And so the crime is covered up.
But they don't come from a society where one well-known crime ruins their whole future, whoever your relatives are.
"how Denmark invented social democracy" is a video here on UA-cam by "kraut". He has a great take on how the Danish social construct came to be. 🙂
Ah, I need to queue it up - I have seen it in my feed but always at the wrong times haha.
@@RobeTrotting although it's been a while since I saw it and I seem to remember a few things that I didn't quite agree with, I'll strongly support this suggestion.
Probably the most divided country ive ever seen but ok.. I dont like my caretakers, my family is split, I have no wife or kids, our females are marrying fo reigners etc. Our entire structure is just falling apart, there was an economic report back in 2019 that everyone just conveniently ignored..
Probably the most divided country ive ever seen but ok.. I dont like my caretakers, my family is split, I have no wife or kids, our females are marrying fo reigners etc. Our entire structure is just falling apart, there was an economic report back in 2019 that everyone just conveniently ignored..
Probably the most divided country ive ever seen but ok.. I dont like my caretakers, my family is split, I have no wife or kids, our females are marrying fo reigners etc. Our entire structure is just falling apart, there was an economic report back in 2019 that everyone just conveniently ignored..
Rigtig god video - Gode eksempler. Et motto jeg selv benytter samt lære mine børn: “Hvis blot du taler sandt, skal du aldrig huske hvad du har sagt”. Meningen med dette motto, er helt simpelt: Frihed. Frihed til at skabe tillid omkring dig selv (som person). Men også at lære at have tillid til din omverden.
Keep up the good work ❤
Great Video as always
Thanks for sharing 🙂
So nice of you, thanks for watching Asger :)
Great video! I really want to visit the US, but as a dane I feel abit stressed out by the opposite culture about trust. I guess it really depends on where you choose to go. I'm considering visiting one of the midwestern states since that seems a little closer to the culture at home rather than NY or LA fx.
You should! There are small towns with a more laid back way of living all over the country, so you wanted to do a hybrid and visit a big city or two and then do some slow travel in some small towns. So many options - I hope you make the trip though :)
I'm not sure about the Midwest, but I heard it's similar to the south with "southern hospitality" being people are just friendly, but don't really mean it. But I think in general the more small town a place is the friendlier they are because of the need to rely on the community and less tolerance there is, in that they don't trust outsiders easily.
I'm from New York City, so a little bit biased. But I think we have the most straight-forward culture in all of United States and the most likely to have a conversation with a stranger. But that might be too forward for Danish culture. But in general, the rest of the country tends to lean more towards the American politeness, that is hard to read. New Yorkers will be honest, but I think only some of us are nice.
It's not so bad as you may think, and as you say it varies hugely across the states and from rural to urban areas.
I'm half Danish, raised by a very trusting Danish mom (who made me very trusting too), but grew up mostly in America -- and here the news is all about selling the idea that there are murderers abs muggers everywhere. No, there aren't. The bigger threat is paranoid people than those very rare things that they're paranoid about.
I think an important aspect of why we trust "the government" (even if many are still skeptical of government, especially if you've followed politics the past 2 or 3 years) is that no matter how dire the problems, there always seems to be *something done* about it politically. There's always someone, or some party, who you can politically align yourself with, who will fight your battle, your issue, your cause. And that it is actually realistic you can make headway on it. Unlike in the US where lobbyists and money raw pragmatism rules everything.
Case in point: when buying small items from the classified ads in Denmark, sellers often offer to leave the item in their garage or shed or such, for you to pick up anytime and transfer money on pickup.
Trusting others and being trustworthy is integral to the Scandinavian societies. And remembering that people are raised to do that is very much key to understanding things about the Scandinavian countries. The politics and the politicians. The happiness. The lack of litter.
Sadly, becoming part of the Danish "trust network" is often hard for immigrants. Are they raised with similar expectations? Can I person who is not speaking perfect Danish be trusted?
Would i trust a stranger coming up to me who spoke English as much as I would trust him/her if she spoke fluent Danish? I am afraid the answer is "likely not".
I think this is the true secret of Scandinavian society : you have the trust of strangers by default. And you are raised to live up to that responsibility.
As an immigrant you mainly have to make do with the trust of the people you know.
That’s probably true, we definitely feel that.
but it does make sense as to why the trust is lower on immigrants and that would be because it is very unlikely for immigrants to have been raised with the same values and principles as people from Scandinavia, it's the sad reality that cultures are just that different around the world that it will affect immigrants in any country a d isn't exclusive to a single nation, just that the way they shape differs from country to country.
@@pleasedontkillme1185 As apart of an immigrant family in US, there is definitely so much pressure to assimilate and we're in a very diverse country. I can't imagine the increased pressure living in Denmark, with much less diversity. It must be very hard on people who look different, looking to build a new life in Denmark. I would like to encourage you and others to not look at "it's the sad reality that cultures are just different around the world". I think the authors and this video shows it's wonderful that it's different. To learn about Danish culture as another unique culture on our blue planet is fascinating. It's more sad more people aren't open to embracing the differences in our world.
@@TheTsl5032 I'm not saying it's sad that cultures are different but more so that it can cause it to be harder for people to feel welcome in a new country they have moved to, if you feel me?
Like for the example for Denmark being that people are more open/trust someone more that speaks fluently danish than someone speaking English because they are a foreigner and thus haven't grown up with the danish culture, makes people a bit more cautious.
A lot of people who don't like immigrants have adopted that point of view after seeing people from other cultures who arrive in Danish society go against the high trust model. When you see someone who is actively damaging the foundation that you and yours work hard to keep in order, it is unfortunately completely natural to assume that those which do not partake (or go against the norms) are a direct detriment. It's not necessarily about racism and it is not necessarily a view born from stupidity or narrow-mindedness, it can just as well be a symptom of seeing something, once or many times, which you know is harmful to society and by extension, harmful to you and everyone else. Of course some blindly assume that foreigners either can't or won't partake in society, which is definitely not true. But in this case a few bad apples sadly do go a long way towards tainting the whole crop.
True - but Denmark had bad apples before a single immigrant, refugee, or asylum seeker arrived and if we all went home, there would still be bad apples and the economy would take a major hit (there's a worker shortage WITH us haha).
@@RobeTrotting, the difference is that they would be our own local bad apples not foreign ones…
People can rock the boat. But if they actively try to sink it they are going overboard.
love your videoes! please come to Aarhus, i would love to show you around
If you want to know something about the danish soul, you should read the works and the life and
times of Robert Storm Petersen (Storm P). He is the essence of danishness.
I would say in some areas the trust has become less. As with nurses/domestic help on a homevisit. In the 1980s and 90s it was common that you would have the same person helping you for several years as retired person. So that person became a good friend to the elderly and to the family. Today a lot of agencies make sure the domestic help doesn't live in the same area (officially so that the domestic worker doesn't work for free in his/hers spare time). As well as less frequent visits and sometimes not by the same person each time. So the trust between nurses/domestic help and the citizen has gone down.
Interesting 🤔
well you can add the police and politicians the trust is way down too... but that's only because they prove they are not trustworthy... and also in the Jobcenter/Sagsbehandler the trust is just gone...
some people would say it´s gone
and the people that stays and pays 50% in tax are fools
vores velfærdssamfund forsvandt da vi fik minimalstat for små 20 år siden
skatten forsvandt bare ikke
@@Hansen710 would say yes it's a light version of what there was in the 80s. It's still there though. And some misused the system. Like those who did go on higher education for 10-20 years. I do get you got the SU-klippekort
Yes! Great video about a never ending talk of trust which is very much the glue we cannot take for granted all the time . but until we are staring at the hopeless naivity, trust seems very much to be SO important in the relationships and the ongoing shaping of society.- Another thing .. if there had been time to talk about it.. is that RESPECT is not necessary something any of us in this country can take for granted. It has to be earned. And this also has something to do with trust.
Great point!
thanks for introducing me to this podcast
Our pleasure! If you like our channel you'll be hooked on WTD! They're great :)
I’ve heard that the high trust levels in Scandinavia can be traced back to ancient times where Scandinavians would be hired as lifeguards in Ancient Greece.
I’ve also heard a hypothesis that the high trust levels are a result of the hash Nordic climate where people needed to be able to rely on each other for survival.
You're likely thinking of the Varangian Guard, which was during the time of the Eastern Roman Empire (AKA Byzantine Empire). They were indeed considered very trustworthy.
@@StergiosMekras thank you for your insight. That was probably what I’d heard. I was a little off by some 1000+ years :)
i dont know where the high lvl of trust comes from, but many outsiders find it relaxing and makes some get a feeling of safety from it...
I hear it a lot that from people that visit how "everyone just seems at ease here" - and I think that's a big part of it.
@@RobeTrotting i think it's a mix of many different things, like trust in the government, trust the people next door, trust teachers, doctors, low crime rate, low corruption, high minimum pay for "low skilled work" and so on... if u take just 1 part but not others, then it dont work, but when 100 little things all line up, it has a big impact...
Your friend here has grasped something really important: predictability, credibility, transparency, honesty; but also tolerance, compassion/empathy and grace. All old knightly virtues that will return to you when honestly practiced. 6PM is 5.55PM, so before 6PM, is your time more precious/important than mine. When everyone arrives on time, it probably gives more time at the end and maybe a Fyraftensakord (when we finish the agreed work for today, we can go home, no matter how early it may be)
I've been in the hospital for a bit more than two weeks now (for a long list of examinations) and I've had no anxiety or fear of just leaving my laptop, cellphone or wallet in my unlocked room when away for examinations or walks. Not even when those examinations took 5+ hours.
That´s what happens, when you are drugged up in the hospital :) I would never leave my wallet in any country.
Denmark here: About money and ourselves/ family vs. society/ government. My mother (in her 70's) as example: There are certain extras (money) that she is entitled to and they could benefit her, yet she doesn't apply for them: _"Yes I would like it, but I don't NEED it, I can make do without it. It will be of more benefit to our society."_ *Don't grab all you can, and only accept what you need.*
*Trust in selling:* I did the same a couple of times: I sold some used item, the buyer came but had forgotten money or didn't have small change, I just said _"pass by with the money next week, no problem"_ - and it never was a problem, they came with the money.
In the old, pagan religion, honour was extremely important. Your word was everything and it was believed that lying, breaking your word, or stealing from your own people would permanently affect your luck, or hamingja.
Really cool to learn that, thanks for watching and sharing this information Fiona :)
@@williamjones4716 som times its just to easy😎
Do you have any non-white friends in Denmark? I love your videos, you guys present information in a very well rounded, respectful, and pleasant way! Keep it up! But I'm curious about what the experience is like, if you look like a obvious foreigner? As I can't change the color of my skin, I would be curious if that can effect my experience in Denmark.
That would be an interesting topic to cover - we have several non-white friends that are both Danish and foreigners. Honestly, Derek is mostly German and Polish in heritage so he kind of blends in enough but Mike has Italian and Irish heritage and has randomly been asked "what are you?" more than a couple of times, sometimes followed by "but where are you from?" if he answers by saying he's American on that he lives in Denmark.
We are raised with the attitude of trust everyone you meet, until they disapoint you. In that way you get many good experiences and very few bad. Besides we all know each other, or if not, we have a common friend or maybe we are related in some way. We all come from Harald Bluetooth 😄
I don’t think we trust each other more than others but people usually have a specific set of friends and oftentimes do not let others into that circle. It takes a long time to reach actual trusting others. On the macro level I agree on the trust in expert systems, authorities in general and we don’t walk out the door doubting the motives of strangers. Those are just some thoughts.
MIght also be why it's sort of hard to become friends with danes. We have to trust you a lot more then other people might do
For sure, this conversation definitely shined a light on other cultural traits. Thinking of them as a matter of trust, or through that lens really unlocked a lot of new perspectives.
Do you really believe it’s hard to become friends with a Dane? 🤔
@@lonniaabye5745 It's what most foreigners say
@@lassemadsen607 I’ve never heard that before.
@@lonniaabye5745 så kender du ik mig 🤣
jeg hader alle som udgangspunkt, venskab og tillid er ik noget man giver tilfældige folk eller myndigheder
As a starter point, i trust others, they must show me they are not trustworthy, but after that you will have a hard time gain my trust again
That's a good approach to trust for sure - something you start with and can only lose :)
Makes life easier overall, but you can get burned as well, and i have my fair share of people doing me wrong, but in my opinion it’s not worth spending time sobbing over, move along forget and forgive, but not letting em do you wrong again
@@RobeTrotting Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.
and not that gibberish bush jr. once said.
Yes. I think the video made Danes look a bit naïve, which is certainly not the case. But the polarity is switched. If you do betray the trust, or in other ways tread outside certain norms for civilised behaviour, you may well find yourself an outcast, possibly for ever. I was at the Field's mall with my daughter on that terrible day not so long ago, and the amount of trust, and the mutual helpfulness, between ordinary people who were complete strangers, was overwhelming (and very positive), but there also was a consensus of immense disgust towards the - at that time "unknown" - shooter. Now, I actually pity the guy, at least a little, but he will not have a normal life for a very long time, if ever. And I'm sure that in Copenhagen, or on Amager at least, _everyone_ knows who he is.
That event also showed how efficient the police and other authorities are. I think there was a policeman or -woman, armed with H&K MP5 submachinegun for every 200 m or so, and even though they were strongly focused on their task, they were all quite relaxed, highly professional, and very helpful and friendly when approached and asked for help or information. I think that is also a good example of how there is a strong sense of initial implicit trust and respect - in a human sense - between Danish authorities and citizens. When people were finally able to be "evacuated" from the sealed off area - with the Metro, which had two lines repurposed just for this task (another example of either creative thinking or eminent advance planning on part of the police management) - everything went nice and smooth, no pushing or panic, just literally thousands of people waiting patiently for their turn to enter the densely packed trains, while smalltalking among each other. I still remember two people next to us in the crowd walking to the station; one said: "Nu mangler det bare at det begynder at regne", to which the other deadpanned the hilariously punny reply: "Ja det ville da være dråben..." I saw a few very upset, worried and crying people that evening (and I saw people, who were obviously complete strangers to them, comfort them with soothing words and warm hugs), but I saw many more smiles, and I didn't see _one_ _single_ self-important angry person showing a negative attitude to the situation or other people. I can't say if this was a specifically Danish way to react, or if this happens with humans everywhere given a serious and acute crisis, but I will say that I had my belief in humanity thoroughly reaffirmed that day.
I was on the bus the other day, and these two girls sat beside me. One absolutely wasted as they get, and the other tipsy at worst, but totally calm both of them. I had my hearphones on. I could see the tipsy one look at me, but I just didn't really bothered to look back, as I get recognized often, so thought it might just have been one of those cases. A bit after, she touches me, and I twitch, but take one earpod out, and she asks for water. Luckily I had an extra bottle of water, so I gave one, but I was so confused because in all honesty they didn't know what was in that bottle, but was so sure I at least didn't mess with it even though it was opened beforehand, and gave the wasted one the water because she needed it.
Years ago, I went to the Viking Museum in Roskilde. I saw a poster there, but didn't buy it because I had no room. When I got back to the US, I emailed them to order it. They sent it to me and asked me to pay them later. I did send them the money, but I was surprised that they had trusted me to pay after I received the poster.
Why no uploading date?
The biggest and most important reason why danes trust each other (and also used to have a much more trust-based society) is because of ethnic homogeneity. Since the 80's we've seen a huge rise of non western people migrating into Denmark. With that, higher crime, rapes and murder has seen a significant rise. This of course, has influenced our trust and safety, which is why you sadly dont see stuff like having babies outside in the bigger cities anymore.
If you want anything that reminds you of the trust society Denmark once was, you'd have to go to the countryside.
So no white people committing crimes. That’s the secret…
@@RobeTrotting Excuse me? Where do you see me claiming that to be the case?
Interesting! However, there is a flip side (as there often is). While Danes do trust each other an incredibly high amount, that same level of trust is often not extended to expats living in Denmark. Some trust, but not the same. If you live rurally, the difference is even bigger and you will find a high level of distrust toward foreigners. Not just with big issues, but with all the small issues of daily life too. If I had to characterize it, I would say that Denmark is a highly functional, unified and homogenous social unit that is difficult for an outsider to join, be part of, and receive the same courtesies of. Especially if you live outside the cities and in areas where foreigners are uncommon, and you may be the only foreigner your neighbours know.
Anyway, I always enjoy your videos! I just find that so often they don't apply to my experience in rural Denmark (5 years). E.g. "Most people speak English in our everyday lives and at work" (in rural Denmark it is the opposite), LGBTQ+ and racial tolerance (not always so rosy out in the sticks! As an LGBTQ+ person myself I've faced slurs numerous times) etc etc. Even though you have so many wonderful videos on so many topics, sometimes I feel like they are really all videos about Copenhagen rather than all of Denmark. Would love to see a video on Danish rural life! Danish rural life has so many problems not present in the cities, but on the upside it also has so much natural beauty, wildlife, tranquillity and hygge. I know you live in the city but maybe you have a friend you could do an interview with (?).
Hi guys! Just wanted to say hi here! I was a bit "sad" that I didn't see you last year at pride parade in Copenhagen! So this year, when I saw you, I got quite excited! 😆 And I think I might have creeped out Derek a bit! I am so sorry Derek, if I did! 😆❤️
But I got a tiny talk with Mike, so I hope he explained, that I wasn't (too) crazy! 😂😂😜
I was the lady trying to dress as Frida Kahlo 😆 with a red flower skirt and white flowers in my hair 😄
Just wanted to say hi in here! And also tell you: I love your videos! I think you are educating danes about Danes! I love it! You are VERY kind about Denmark! Maybe you guys are sometimes a bit too kind to us! 😄❤️❤️ But honestly I really like getting the differences explained! Some things I know already, and some things are eye openers! I think it's really great!
Maybe us Danes just love watching these types of videos about our selves! 😆 But also we are very influenced by America today, so I really think it's healthy and great to see these differences and likenesses.. Thanks for your channel! 👍👍❤️😄
Love from Marie
A large influx of people from incompatible cultures has changed the general level of trust - or, you might say, increased the trust level within defined groups sharing common values.
One factor that I think is not mentioned in the video, which certainly plays a large part in the "trust-levels" of Danish society (and Scandinavian societies as a whole) is the fact, that Denmark is a really small country with, historically, a very homogenous population. This homogeneity obviously extend beyond merely looking similar. It means that, by-and-large, people are brought up with similar values and live in similar situations, which creates a society-level shared idea of right/wrong and the values by which to adhere when interacting with other people.
A country like the US is so diverse, both geographically and culturally, that such homogeneity, and thus the trust it creates, is virtually impossible to have.
In economics that would be described as "decreased transactional costs" ie you don´t have to put effort/ money in hedging against being treated fraudulently. In Denmark you dont have to hedge because in the end/ final analysis the legal system is quite reliable and un-corruptible and will make you get your due. (Which in turn hinges on the state apparatus being uncorruptible which has historical reasons).
The baby you are talking about was in a foster home for four days. She was usually breastfed and didn't eat or drink much during those four days. She was completely hoarse when she was returned after four days of crying.
The mother was sitting within eye sight RIGHT on the other side of the window.
I remember that case quite vividly. The mother was visiting her BF (maybe ex) who was the father of the child. That was probably the last time she did that.
The culture differences seemed very alien to me when I visited the US. I don't thin I'll every do that again. I don't feel safe or trust that I (foreigner, woman, old) would be treated fair if I didn't bribe the authorities.
The same day she was arested one of the US morning tv shows was in Copenhagen(I mean it was ABC) and actually reported about the babies out side stores.I mean it was in 95
The trust level thing is funny, My boyfriend is from the UK and i find him kind of paranoid compared to my fellow danes and myself hehe. He just seems to think; any stranger is probably out to get you. Me on the other hand being used to things like often not locking doors and leaving expensive bikes outside, occationally also unlocked, cause I'm used to it being fine to do so
Yeah, it definitely makes me feel like I’m paranoid sometimes 😂
You reap what you sow, trust people and you will be trusted in return. Even if it is naive, I at least find it to work. So far I've lost less by trusting, than by distrusting people. At the very least, it is less exhaustive.
I'm a dane, and we always dry our clothes on the clothes line outside, because why not, right? No need for a dryer. I remember a british friend of mine telling me her dryer had broken and i said "Well, just use a clothes line outside and that's problem solved". Apparently, in her area, getting your clothes stolen off of your clothes line is a worry that people have, and i was not prepared for that.
We both did that growing up - that seems odd to us too, but I guess I could see it in some places 🤷🏻♂️
Guess I am an atypical dane... I stopped trusting people after my trust have been betrayed too many times.
That seems pretty reasonable anywhere (at least to me haha).
@@RobeTrotting yeah but it also sucks, I used to be very trusting (not naive) but when people backstab you enough you simply just stop... but it feels "bad/wrong" to not trust people anymore... especially now that you know how trusting danes are in general.
I would advice you to explore outside your friend circle to regain your trust in danes / humanity. Sounds like you had a bad friend group.
You should try looking into stavnsbåndet. If you want to see hierarchical system, that, I think, is he purest form northern Europe has seen at any point in the past 1000 years. It was basically slavery and it lasted for over 70 years, from 1733 to 1800. Basically this meant that the peasants were owned by the local lord and torture was a perfectly reasonable thing to exercise at every turn and it was and people died. Lots of them. Arguably this might be the reason why figures such as Grundtvig (the founding father of unionisation in Denmark, you might say. And by unions I mean the club/society tendencies, not necessarily labor unions though that was a direct consequence) became as popular as they did.
Also giant fan of the random lone pram in the background XD
Researching a bit more about stavnsbåndet and it seems like something that would be cool to take a deep dive on! And that pram, WOW - didn't even realize it until we had the video edited and noticed it haha. Couldn't have planned something like that if we tried! LOL
@@RobeTrotting I encourage it, it is one of my favorit topics. It is almost as corrupt as the Estrup Government which lasted from 1875 to 1894, because the king refused to sign the papers allowing for the the passage of power to the winning party. Basically for just short of 20 years, Denmark was a dictatorship. The years leading up to and basically all of the 1800's were wild.
The fact that you did not angle the camera on purpose to get the pram in the picture just makes it even better XD
Trust is based in honesty, if there's no honesty, there's no trust.
trust or "tillid" in danish is extremely important to me, i give it and i expect it to be given to me
I found a mobile phone fiercely ringing in a parking lot in Malmoe. Nobody around. I couldn't reply, as it was locked somehow. I took it home to Lund, try to get around the problem, found the number from which the call came (obviously multiple calls) - called up from my phone and explained the situation. She was very nice. I gave my name and phone-number. She oviously was the partner as I had assume, and she had been worried, just as I had thought. Made an appointment to meet up, in the middle of the next day, in the middle of Lund, I'm an elderly lady. We met, I handed over the phone, said a few words of how it came I had found it. We spoke English, he sounded lika a native English speaker. I expected he'd present himself with his name and would have said thanks - but he only said "OK!" and vanished. Strange.
His behaviour was so odd that I started to think: what if he wasn't the rightful owner of the phone! I could have given the phone to the police with less bother for me, but this arrangement was less bother for him...
Idk for me as a Dane the trust thing, as I see it/hear/experience it, has for the last 10, 20, 40 years, been on a retreat, mainly for the trust in our coverment/in the system!
I'm sorry but the kind stranger doesn't live everywhere. For 6 months I used crutches and it was hell to take the bus in Copenhagen and again and again nobody gave me a seat. People suddenly got blind and didn't see me. I had to stop taking the bus, because it was to hard and painful because people wouldn't help. NowmI live in Aalborg in Jutland and people are more helpful. I wish it wasn't like that.
Dane here. Im sorry you cant expect just because u have crutches, are Old or something else to get a Seat on a bus. its not because people are mean. I cant really explain it. Also many have invissible pains to deal with and they stand up on the bus and so on. U cant just own that Seat. Its nice to get one, but cant expect it to be “this i how we do it, because i have cruthes”. Their is not a name on the Seat that says “its mine because..”. I like it being if their is a Seat take it, if not u have to stand up like everyone else. U cant just have it. And ive met a lot if crumpy Old mean people Force people, also me to give up their Seat like its their own private chair from Home. Its not how the society works.. at least what i Think.
SOMEONE looks like HE got a lot of sun on his recent holiday! Good for you!
Methinks you both might have missed your comedy calling.
Economic stability, somewhat of a security of living income in case of illness, pebsions etc.makes the crime rates much lower than in the US.
Ristrictive gunlaws makes random shootings (singular and mass) a VERY rare occurence,although the tragic case at Fields is a newer one.
I think it all cobtributes to us not fearing the world.
As an ex-pat I remember American media as very fear-mongeringand the sheer amount of guns was... insane.
It seems like fewer Danesare "scared of their own shadow" and it makes a huge difference.
@@williamjones4716 he didnt use guns(as far as i know) he did a horrible crime in another horrific Way. But crazy he is.
So in essence if you want a society based on trust you must be in the same "tribe"? That kinda kicks multi-cultural out of the door? Or?
In theory, yes, or at least a rather conformist and one-way integration.
@@RobeTrotting Very interesting but not an diskussion we should dwell into. To explosive and I dont want your great UA-cam channel to explode ;)
well when you talk about trust today you have to remember the story behind it, starting out as a monarchy , the king turning over power to first a couple of parties and later to folketinget, unions fighting for workers rights, a system that has changed and adapted over the years. denmark being largely of the same type of people with 10 or 15 % of other kinds of people you do see deebates and arguments about racism and exclusion but i really dont know how different it is from other countries. i would say things are also very different from the countryside to big cities but maybe not as big as in larger countries with cities with 10s of millions of people.
imo when i speak with other danes i dont really think they are very trusting ( mostly concerning the system and politicians) or happier than other people or friendlier than other people , but of course its always easier from someone coming in from the outside to spot. but basicly i think that danes is always saying theres something rotten in the state of denmark , everything is going to hell , things was much better in the good old days etc. or at least we /they have as long as i lived.
but many danes also has this now calm down take it easy and let see how it is tomorrow or in danish klap lige hesten / klap lige farmor.
The thing about the accidental tax return reminds me of what I’ve just learned about welfare systems. The American one is liberal social security is something you buy it’s your responsibility. The Danish one is the social democratic one where it’s the governments duty and that is financed through taxes. There is also a conservative version that you for example will find in Germany where it’s your family or friends duty to support you and if you are without a job and don’t have any that can support you you can maybe get help from the church
ok for a starter.....im pretty sure that walkingaround with that knife is illigal......the downside to trust, one exsample if the taxfaut. theres alot of trust in the system too. and that has been taken advantage off
So you don’t trust us?
@@RobeTrotting with a knife? nope abselutly not.
I ve though about this topic a lot since i moved away from Argentina 8 years ago, and apart from the cultural history that Danes share, it s worth mentioning that when you have such high salaries for such a long period of time, you get used to being safe. So stealing never even crosses your mind. But when you ve lived and seen and grown up surrounded by poverty and lack and corruption, and you have not seen anything else, you operate from a state of survival. It would be a completely different society if for 10 years they had poverty. You would start seeing the same trustworthy people change 100%. So you never truly know a person (or a society) until there is a terrible situation to face.
Unfortunately Argentina (as well as many other societies) has had very bad experiences with "the system" and you have to protect yourself from it.
I don t know if there s a way to come back from such deep trauma.
I thought William Tell was Swiss.
This was interesting. The whole thing about predictability could perhaps explain the caution or even distrust many Danes have towards foreigners from cultures very different from ours.
I myself am guilty of that. It’s not racism because it has nothing to do with skin color or facial features, it’s a culture thing.
Still there are some universal values that overrides that sense of caution, like how children especially babies are precious and must be protected. So if you are at a playground with a toddler and a sleeping baby in a pram and your toddler needs to use the toilet, I wouldn’t hesitate to ask a woman or family present, regardless of ethnicity, if they would please keep an eye on the pram while I take my toddler peeing.
Remember denmark is a small country. If word gets around and it will that you can't be trusted you are kinda sidelined in danish society. So if you want to be part you have to show trust. I have lived in spain germany and philippines and i would trust any dane more than anyone ive met past 10 years. Apart from many danes living abroad. I have found out the reason many have moved from denmark is they have been sidelined. They simply don't fit in anymore. Its like 70 percent of the danes i have met past 10 years since leaving denmark
som dansker må jeg sige at hollændere ved man hvor man har.
danskere vil jeg ik sige man kommer godt afsted med at stole på, medmindre man kan lide og trække det korte strå.
hollænderne tog også pænere mod mig end danskere gør nye steder og der føler jeg mig egentlig mere hjemme end i dk (hvis vi skal snakke om danske værdier, så betyder mange af de værdier mere for hollændere end de gør for danskere nu om dage)..
jeg har også boet i tyskland og spanien og der giver jeg di ret, medmindre vi snakker "Ordnung muss sein"
der skal være styr på tingene uanset om de så ødelægger alt for dem selv og andre
and yet strangely enough, for all our level playing fields, and our trust in each other
..we are 'cold and indifferent to strangers'
- go figure?! 🤔🤣
hello from Hundested 🌸🌱
Wish this concept of trust applied to car drivers in 🇩🇰
I CAN trust other danish drivers to tailgate, speed over the limit and not have any regard for other drivers. Other than that driving it’s fantastic in Denmark.
Haha, but you can predict their behavior - so I guess that's supposedly a positive LOL
I personally blame German automakers for that, and I know I'm not the only one who thinks so. Okay, I admit not having made a systematic data collection and analysis, and there are exceptions, but in a significant number of cases, when I get tailgated on the motorway, the car is German-made, with Audi making up the largest number, followed by BMW, and then Mercedes. I wonder if there's something in the upholstery, like a fire retardant or maybe a leather tanning agent, that affects the brain of many Danish drivers, and causes rotten driving.
so it´s you guy´s thats blocking the traffic 🤣
i do drive german, but non of those brands and those brands are normally not fast anuff to tailgate me 😆
to be fair in dk your kind can spend time in the left lane in dk, but if you do that in germany the cars do more then tailgate you.
and in most other countrys in south europe people will make room for them self to pass you.
@@Hansen710 If I am passing a group of trucks and going at the speed limit (at least! Unless there are cars ahead passing at slower speed, which often happens) you have no fucking business at the rear end of my car, you just keep at a safe distance, or get off the road, scrap your car, hand in your license and take a hike on foot, as you obviously can't be entrusted with wheels.
As a dane I have gotten access to another persons appartment to look after some cats. Because that person trusted me to not steal or do other bad things
Wasn’t it because they wanted you to feed the cat? 😉
Don't be too trusting .....in Denmark we have different levels of trust. A small People that was even smaller in the past had a lot of social control and your reputation was important if you wanted to act with people more than once. You got conventions of acceptable behavior you learned from Childhood. And this has probably been similar in most of Scandinavia. In a city like Copenhagen which was bigger and more anonymous, you had different levels of trust.
It has historical roots but today it works as a good lubricant for daily business as you can generally predict what to expect....but still it is wise to be a bit prudent and read the situation. Social control and moral compass are not as strong as in the past. Another complication is an influx of cultures with very different moral standards about honesty.
I cannot stand people who do not talk straight. The dansing around leads me to believe something is very wrong.
Communicate clearly and to the point. Thats a big culture thing for me.
And sometimes it has made me distrust foreigners when I did not have to.
I wonder how many people who isnt from Denmark who would freak while watching this, because of the “abandent” stroller in the background 😂😆🤔🤭😎 sorry couldnt help it 😂
Americans watched like 🤯
Betraying the trust of someone is posibly one of the worst things you can do in Denmark - and it extends to the rest of Danish Society.
Examples:
1: A danish high-school graduate was applying to a university in Denmark. His GPA was not high enough to get in based on the GPA alone (there is a whole interview process if you GPA isn't high enough...), so he decided to change some numbers on his exam papers using Photoshop. What he did not know was that all danish high-school diplomas are immediately acessible to the university once you apply because they are uploaded to the same system that handles, banks, healthcare, loans, police records etc.
The guy was immediately exposed as a fraud within hours (uploading exam papers manually instead of just letting the application form fetch your papers from the central database is a red flag in itself). The guy had to serve a short sentence for forgery and was barred from applying to any Danish university again.
Oh and excluding someone from a friend group after 20 years of friendship because they said they'd show up at a house party, but didn't is perfectly understandable unless they had a last-minute excuse that checked out.
You mention Scandinavia in general in the video when it comes to trust, and Sweden are very much like Denmark in that regard. That trust is being eroded in some quarters, though, as for example our social welfare system is taken advantage of by people from "non-skiing nations" (as the euphemism goes). Several cases have gone to court in recent years, where entire families have been benefiting from one family member faking a disability, and others in that family have been reimbursed as care-givers (instead of hiring a nurse). It's sad, because it feeds into the xenopohobia and thus affects honest immigrants, too.
One reason Swedes were (are?) regarded as honest but a bit stupid in the US is this very trust you mention, which resulted in Swedish immigrants being taken advantage of. Coming from a trust-based rural society to a "dog eat dog" setting like the US over a century ago must've been a shock.
NO comment! Absolutely no comment!🤐
Maybe except: 13 med pil opad 😍
(now, go figure what that means, you Clever Cookies)
Thank you so much! I had to look it up (I assume it's a term based off of the grading system maybe?).
@@RobeTrotting old grading system yes.
@@RobeTrotting yep!
I love the example with a housemaid/Gardner who steals. In a small Danish society something like that would be known by many people quickly, so it would have immediate consequences.
Punctuality is extremely important in Denmark.
You be there and I will be there everybody is good. Dont waste my time and I dont waste yours. People are not meant to be on standby for other people. I
f my boss was late to a meeting I would scold him for being late and wasting my time. He knows he is wasting my time and he had messed up my work plan.
Just be timely and everybody is good.
I lost my wallet in Lidl,, 2 days after my mailman told me he had drop'd it in my mailbox. Nice people, had put in the publis mailbox. Like good old days-.
Did you notice that on the Danish money it says "In People We Trust", not like the US, you know how that goes andworks. Haha.
Meh, that’s a Cold War thing - comparing America to the godless Soviets, but it’s not really a good reference for the religiosity of the country.
High trust and low corruption goes hand in hand - and high trust pays off. It is much cheaper to trust than control, e.g. the Police can focus on important stuff as the know 99% behaves in a good way.
Trust in the government yes, although comeplely misplaced in my opinion. Trust in eachother? No, this is absolutely not the case my experience. Im from here and lived in DK all my life. We have less crime then other places yes, but not much trust tbh. People are mean muggin' eachother left and right, especially if you dont look scandinavian, people WILL stare at you and not in a nice way. Many of these wonderful sentiments I simply dont find to be the case no more.. I feel like people are describing Denmark like it perhaps was in the 90s or the 2000s and just repeating some fairytale. Let me remind everyone that an ice cream that was 18 kr not so long ago is 39 kr today and peoples salery are pretty much the same. Butter 35 kr and 1 liter of milk is 16 kr.. 😅😅. The fact that the danes has trust left is impressive in itself although I find it somewhat untrue if you dont look like you belong.
You could say, in a way, that "cancel culture" exists in Denmark. But it is targeted at people who break the law?
Not at political correctness, but at illegal behaviour.
We all trust each other to educate, or correct, behaviour when people break the rules.
It doesn't have to be verbal, but try crossing a clear road while the light is red.
You will get lots of disapproving looks. Sometimes people will even speak up.
It's the rules. And we incorporate a lot of social constructs into to the rules, and thereby giving permission to disapprove of people that don't follow those rules.
Because they are in ink, rather than just opinions.
Like how to treat a flag, etc.
Yeah, there's a lot of passive aggressive or silent judging for sure haha. I wouldn't really call that cancel culture though - I think that term gets thrown around a lot, but people be held to account when they break a law isn't really "cancel culture" in my opinion.
Regarding getting a wrong tax refund, your not entitled to! Danes know that the IRS (Told & Skat) will find out, and get "our" money back (most of the time), one way or the other 😎. So there's no point in keeping them. Although most will return it, because it's the right thing to do, regardless 😊 We trust each other, until there's a reason not to 😀!!
When i was little, my mother could put my pram outside, and trust no one took me, I did this with my own kids, but today , no i wouldnot do that
I think this video suffered badly from clumsy editing. At one point Sam suddenly says "fast forward about x-hundred years...", and it made absolutely no sense, I guess because of some unusually heavyhanded cutting of what he said up to that point. :-(
apologies
@@RobeTrotting no need for apologies! I'm sure you'll get it right next time! :-)
Louis XIV: The State? That me!
Danes: The State? That's us!
Some places: The state? Where my gun?
I take that you guys are somewhat upper class. Have you ever considered doing homeless and people in the lower bracket here in Denmark. Compared to the US and doing it properly? Like not just what you get from statistics but go down to the spot in Vesterbro next to the central station and speak to the people?
You have a very shallow notion of Denmark still.
I think that would be really interesting and we live in Vesterbro, I’d be a little worried about doing it in a way that isn’t exploitative. Also, I worry about our Danish skills and how to compare it to the States without a plan to go back in the same time period… hmmm 🤔 it’s a worthy topic for sure. Need to mull it over a bit.
😁😁😁
🇩🇰😀
People that are from Denmark:
👇
I know why it's a bit different there... but I would probably get banned for saying it. But it's true... whether they want to say so or not.
Leaving your baby outside yes that is common. Maybe we are not so mental as in the US .
As a 100% dane, I trust absolutely noone
Go back to Viking age, or maybe before, where it was a fundamental part of the society, to be trustworthy, your legacy is everything