Societal trust is widely believed to be a fundamental component of prosperous societies, but geographical determinants of societal trust have not been examined in depth. This study examines hypothesized pathways between geography and societal trust.

Strongest support is found for the hypothesis that higher geographical latitude leads to lower disease prevalence, lower income inequality, and less ethnic and less linguistic heterogeneity. Lower disease prevalence, lower income inequality, and less ethnic and less linguistic heterogeneity in turn appear to determine the viability of a "virtuous circle" of mutually reinforcing societal characteristics, including greater wealth, greater life expectancy, greater political rights, greater civil liberties, greater societal trust, less religiosity, and less corruption.