To me it boils down to whether there is a propensity to find short-cuts that you can get away with versus a culture that somehow encourages doing the right thin

To me it boils down to whether there is a propensity to find short-cuts that you can get away with versus a culture that somehow encourages doing the right thing by going the distance. Countries where short-cuts are popular are often ones where individuals are willing to take from the commons. So in this sense there is clearly a relationship with trust and corruption. If everyone around you seems to be screwing over the common, you would be irrational not to do the same. How to transition from short-cutting to going the distance, e.g. from hurting the group for your gain, to sacrificing for the group's gain... that is the question. But at least part of the answer has to be that when the group can gain together, everyone is better off.