Draining or gaining? The social networks of public housing movers in Boston

Abstract

The social networks of low-income residents have been simultaneously described as supportive, strained, localized, and limited in providing access to necessary resources and information. Using a longitudinal qualitative approach, this study investigated the social networks of low-income women in one US high-poverty public housing project. Existing sociological frameworks for studying networks did not fully capture the women's social ties, particularly their “draining” ties. As the women were relocated as part of a mixed-income housing initiative targeting their neighborhood, a changing flow of resources and stress passed through social ties. A change in neighborhood prompted changes in low-income people's social networks far different than expected. Findings also raise questions about the importance of weak or bridging ties in linking low-income women with mobility opportunities.

How community physical, structural, and social stressors relate to mental health in the urban slums of Accra, Ghana

“…A rapidly growing body of literature has suggested that local social dynamics, specifically social capital and social cohesion, are powerful contributors to mental health (Aneshensel and Sucoff, 1996;Carpiano, 2006;Caughy et al, 2003;Cornwell and Waite, 2009;Curley, 2009;Fitzpatrick et al, 2005;Fitzpatrick and LaGory, 2000;Gary et al, 2007;Gutman and Sameroff, 2004;Kawachi and Berkman, 2001;Kim, 2010;Omata, 2012;Pearlin, 1989;Phan et al, 2009;Schulz et al, 2006;Thoits, 1995;Usher, 2007;Xue et al, 2005). Conclusions regarding the benefits of social capital and social cohesion are mixed, however, which reflects the complexity of the social processes by which they shape mental health, as well as lack of scholarly consensus on how to define and operationalize them.…”

“…According to the latter perspective, social capital takes the form of actual or potential resources that derive from social networks (Bourdieu, 1986;Carpiano, 2006). Social capital can benefit mental health by providing an economic and psychological safety net in an environment that lacks sufficient opportunities to meet basic necessities (Aneshensel and Sucoff, 1996;Carpiano, 2006;Caughy et al, 2003;Cornwell and Waite, 2009;Curley, 2009;Fitzpatrick et al, 2005;Fitzpatrick and LaGory, 2000;Gary et al, 2007;Kawachi and Berkman, 2001;Kim, 2010;Omata, 2012;Pearlin, 1989;Phan et al, 2009;Ross et al, 2000;Sampson et al, 1997;Thoits, 1995;Usher, 2007;Xue et al, 2005). In disadvantaged contexts, social capital may be vital for assistance with day-to-day tasks and vital needs (e.g., economic assistance, providing food, lending goods, child care, household repairs, transportation).…”

“…In disadvantaged settings, local social capital may prove ineffective in buffering the ill effects of local and household stressors, and may even amplify their effects (Belle, 1982;Caughy et al, 2003;Curley, 2009, De Silva et al, 2007Durden et al, 2007;Offer, 2012;Phan et al, 2009;Usher, 2007;Warner and Rountree, 1997;Wen et al, 2006). Norms of balanced reciprocity are difficult to enforce in economically deprived settings (Offer, 2012), particularly in the setting of sub-Saharan Africa where norms of communalism and sharing are emphasized (Jensen and Gaie, 2010).…”

“…Community-based social resources (e.g., social capital, social cohesion) may temper the relationship between local stressors and mental health, prompting scholars and policymakers to consider the utility of incorporating a concern for social capital and cohesion into plans for urban revitalization (Lang and Hornburg, 2010). However recent evidence of the downsides of social capital and cohesion in distressed communities illustrates the importance of exploring how, and for whom, these social resources may benefit mental health (Caughy et al, 2003;Curley, 2009;Mair et al, 2010;Mitchell and LaGory, 2002).…”

Neighborhoods, social capital and economic success.

“…Also, by disrupting established support networks, moving may actually be detrimental to economic success (Curley 2009 (Goetz 2011). These externalities when combined with the difficulty of movers to integrate into new networks mean that mobility policies may actually result in a net reduction of social capital.…”