Virtually no other sensation is as elusive as trust. A lack of trust is terrible because it is the basis of all relationships, both personal and professional. Literary critic Jürgen Wertheimer and brain researcher Niels Birbaumer have joined forces to decode the nature of trust.

Abuse of trust is rightly regarded as taboo. But there is a good reason for talking about taking a leap of faith, since often we cannot know for certain if our trust in someone will be justified. In trusting, we take on the risk of injury. And if you were to ask a neuroscientist where trust is located, they would not be able to give an answer.

The authors address the complexity of this fundamentally important feeling for the first time. The literary critic searches extensively in the history of literature; the neurobiologist in the brain. Their efforts open up a completely new and far-reaching understanding of this existential and essential concept.