In the 1990s the concept of social capital-defined here as the norms and networks that enable people to act collectively-enjoyed a remarkable rise to prominence across all the social science disciplines. The authors trace the evolution of social capital research as it pertains to economic development and identify four distinct approaches the research has taken: communitarian, networks, institutional, and synergy. The evidence suggests that of the four, the synergy view, with its emphasis on incorporating different levels and dimensions of social capital and its recognition of the positive and negative outcomes that social capital can generate, has the greatest empirical support and lends itself best to comprehensive and coherent policy prescriptions. The authors argue that a significant virtue of the idea of and discourse on social capital is that it helps to bridge orthodox divides among scholars, practitioners, and policymakers.
Cents and SociabilityMatching a measure of social capital with data on household income in certain Household Income and Social Capital rural villages inTanzania in Rural Tanzania shows that 'social capital" is indeed both capital (in that it raises incomes) and social (in that household incomes
Increasing attention is being paid, in the World Bank and elsewhere, to the social aspects of development. A country's economic development is embedded in its social organization, and addressing structural inequities requires not only economic changes but also societal transformation (Stiglitz, 1998). But social phenomena are so all-pervasive, and often so vaguely defined, that taking them into account in a systematic way is actually very difficult. One approach to untangling and analyzing some of the social forces at work in development is through the concept of social capital. 2 The tern refers in general to the glue that holds groups and societies together-bonds of shared values, norms and institutions (see Section 2, page 4 below for a fuller discussion). This paper concentrates on two aspects of social capital, "cross-cutting ties" and the interaction between informal and formal institutions. This interaction is characterized as one of complementarity or substitution. Although the focus is narrow, the paper argues that these elements of social capital and their interrelationship help explain a number of puzzles, and have important implications for policy. The argument, in brief, is as follows.-All societies are built from social groups rather than individuals, and these groups determine attitudes, beliefs, identities and values, as well as access to resources and opportunities-and ultimately access to power. Since most societies are not homogeneous, but are divided by class, caste. religion and ethnicity, groups differ in their access to resources and power. There may be high social capital within a group ("bonding" social capital) which helps members, but they may be excluded from other groups (they lack "bridging" social capital) 3. * Cross-cutting ties between groups open up economic opportunities to those belonging to less powerful or excluded groups. They also build social cohesion, a critical element in social stability and economic welfare over any extended period. Social cohesion requires not just The framework for this paper was discussed at a two-day research workshop held at the World Bank in June 1998. Michael Walton, Gloria Davis, Ishac Diwan, Emmanuel Jimenez, and Christiaan Grootaert made valuable comments on an earlier (November 1998) draft. Michael Woolcock, Mike Edwards, Anirudh Krishna and John Blaxall contributed useful comments on the present version. Veronica Nyhan and Magdalena Syposz provided valuable research assistance. 2 The term dates back at least to 1916, but was popularized in the last decade by the work of James Coleman (1988) and Robert Putnam (1995). A thorough review of the history and main concepts covered under the rubric of social capital can be found in Michael Woolcock (1998).
While social capital is emerging as a theory rich in its potential for understanding the relationships between societal norms and values, and community outcomes, clarification of its measures remains unresolved. This article attempts to contribute to this measurement issue by presenting a reliable self-report instrument for measuring social capital in societal environments. The instrument is grounded in the theoretical and measurement literature of social capital, and proposes an evolving conceptual framework of social capital's dimensions, determinants and outcomes. The instrument was empirically validated using data collected in the African Republics of Ghana and Uganda. The article presents results of exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses that substantiate a number of robust dimensions of social capital, prominent at the household and aggregate levels, and across the two country data sets. Both recommended and suggested survey questions are documented for use in subsequent research relevant to measuring social capital. Regression analyses supporting the validity of the measures are included, as are reliability measures.
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