This week, the New York Times reported that the Trump administration has been erased from government documents and that federal workers are compiling a list of words to refrain from using it. Many terms such as “day,” “implicit bias,” or “equity” are expected from the current administration. However, I was surprised to see the list of two terms that are less relevant to political correctness than the widely accepted human psychology, “attribution” and “sense of belonging.”
While the Trump administration may face criticism for being involved in the kind of linguistic “cancellation culture” that conservatives frequently denounce, there is particularly risk in rejecting deeply important values for people across political parties, which could be key to dealing with mental health crises around the world.
This month, on the other side of the Atlantic, my colleagues and I at the Attribution Forum published the results of a study of 10,000 people showing why attributes are more important than ever. Attribute Barometer for 2025 reveals a crisis. Almost a third (29%) of UK respondents reported loneliness frequently, with 10% saying they had no close friends at all. But loneliness is just part of the story. The deep issues revealed through our research are the serious erosion of trust, solidarity and mutual respect. Respondents said they felt isolated from their community, lacked meaningful participation and voice in decisions that affect their lives, and lacked mutual bonds essential to healthy society.
The situation in the US is similar. Over the past 20 years, face-to-face social connections among Americans have declined significantly, down 30% among men and 45% among teens. Trust in American institutions fell likewise. Gallup’s research shows that over roughly the same period, the US moved from the first to the last in terms of trust in agencies from government to media to healthcare. This loss of trust greatly contributes to social polarization, weakening community cohesion, and reducing civic participation.
There is clear evidence that we are facing a deficit of belonging around the world. It is a crisis that should have something to do with people across the ideological spectrum.
Gallup data, for example, reveals that US church attendance has declined from around 70% in the 1990s to less than 50% today, but trust in core civic institutions, including government, the media and even schools, has reached historic lows for both Republicans and Democrats.
There is irony in the current administration’s efforts to cancel attribution words, aiming to study psychology. The effectiveness of the slogan “Make America Great Again” is about a broad sense of loss of attributes between voters’ segments. For a decade, President Trump has tried to deal with fears about the disappearance of community, identity and purpose. Maga became the movement because they told them they had a deep admiration for some of their voters. It was an American nostalgia that once saw people’s shared missions to their neighbours, towns and countries, and a sense of deep connection and loyalty.
Through 20 years of research, I concluded that belonging is rooted in a place that connects with others, feels like home, has a voice, chooses, and treats with respect. This is what Trump claims to offer to his voters. And there is a reason such promises resonated with many people. Over half a century ago, Abraham Maslow identified “attribution” as an emotional need and one of the most powerful animation powers in human psychology.
Still, it is important to look beyond the “US and Tem” strategy to meaningfully address the attribution crisis. Pioneering research on social identity theory has highlighted the frequent demands of within-group and group simplicity in order to understand how we fit into a distorted world. And there is a powerful case that Maga’s imaginary vision relies on being a society that never truly exists, or at least removing a large part of the population. The path to healing indignation and restoration lies in interconnectedness beyond strategies and differences to cultivate mutual interest.
It is understandable that in a time of so many obstacles and change, people reject subtle ideas about social connections in favor of exclusive slogans.
However, attribution should not be a point of controversy. It is the answer to what plagues virtually every politically striped person.
