Almost nine in ten people trust engineers to tell them the truth, making them Britain’s second most trusted professionals, according to the results of the latest Ipsos Veracity Index.
The Ipsos Veracity Index is an annual poll that has measured the trustworthiness of professions in Britain since 1983. This year’s survey involved telephone interviews with 2,009 British adults, aged 16+, who were asked whether they generally trust members of 30 different professions to tell the truth.
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Engineers, who were trusted by 87 per cent of respondents, were one of only three professions whose 2022 trust score had improved, up from sixth place (with a score of 84 per cent) in 2021. Only nurses (89 per cent of those surveyed) were more trusted.
The profession, which makes up almost a fifth of the UK workforce, is trusted to tell the truth by almost nine in ten people (87 per cent of those surveyed), closely following nurses (89 per cent) and moving ahead of doctors, teachers and museum curators this year to achieve its highest-ever ranking since engineering was first included in the survey in 2018. Engineers have recorded similar levels of trust in previous years, including a score of 89 per cent in 2020.
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Trust in engineers is equal across genders, with just a one percentage point difference between men and women. Despite this, only 16.5 per cent of engineers and technicians identify as women.
‘Engineers play a central role in everyday life, contributing to advancing the world around us and finding solutions to global challenges such as climate change,’ said Professor Bob Cryan CBE, president of the Institution of Engineering and Technology, which has been working with Ipsos on the survey. ‘It’s fantastic to see that nearly nine in ten people trust engineers – this demonstrates the huge level of professionalism and importance of engineers in the UK.
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‘The last couple of years have highlighted more than ever the vital role engineers play in developing technology and rapid processes, to keep our infrastructure and economy running,’ he continued. ‘This recognition of trust by the public is a welcome boost to all those in industry, academia and our communities working together to address the shortfalls in engineer numbers faced across the UK by encouraging the next generation of talent, as engineering continues to be a vital profession across the world.’