Is It Time to Disinvest in Social Capital?

Abstract

In an effort at theoretical clarification, the authors reviewed 45 recent articles reporting empirical research employing the concept of ‘social capital’. The literature is roughly equally divided between those who treat social capital as an independent variable and those who consider it as a dependent variable, and between those who operationalize the concept principally in terms of norms, values and attitudes and those who choose a more social structural operationalization, invoking social networks, organizations and linkages. Work on social capital as a mainly normative variable is dominated by political scientists and economists, while sociologists and a wide range of applied social scientists utilize more social structural understandings of the term. We find little to recommend in the use of ‘social capital’ to represent the norms, values and attitudes of the civic culture argument. We present empirical, methodological and theoretical arguments for the irrelevance of ‘generalized social trust’, in particular, as a significant factor in the health of democracies or economic development. Social structural interpretations of social capital, on the other hand, have demonstrated considerable capacity to draw attention to, and illuminate, the many ways in which social resources are made available to individuals and groups for individual or group benefit, which we take to be the prime focus and central attraction of the social capital concept. The paper concludes by elaborating a context-dependent conceptualization of social capital as access plus resources, and cautions against ‘over-networked’ conceptualizations that equate social capital with access alone.

Ageing in changing community contexts: Cross-border perspectives from rural Ireland and Northern Ireland

“…They're not coming out to claim anything, they're just sitting in their house you know. (Interview with female Ards resident) This points to the fact that social networks, and the social capital that they can be used to generate, may not be accessible to all individuals (Foley and Edwards, 1999;Shorthall, 2008). For the most part though, participants praised the readiness of their rural neighbours to provide help and support when required.…”

Social capital and management control systems: A study of a non-government organization

“…NGOs rely on developing social connections to draw together those in need with service providers and suppliers of welfare funding. This raises issues of how social connectedness can help organizations, such as NGOs, to deliver their services, and, consequently, has encouraged researchers to examine social infrastructures that facilitate individual and collective action of many kinds (Coleman, 1990;Foley & Edwards, 1999). Across a broad range of disciplines, the study of social connectedness has been facilitated by examining the phenomenon of social capital.…”

“…Social capital relates to existing and emerging social infrastructures that facilitate individual and collective actions of many kinds (Foley & Edwards, 1999). In this study we consider social capital as a property of an organization, where individual and collective actions provide actual or potential benefits for organizations (Baker, 1990;Nahapiet & Ghoshal, 1998;Portes, 1998;Adler & Kwon, 2002).…”

Young people's embodied social capital and performing disability

“…By contrast bridging ties are more extensive, crosscutting and uniting individuals and groups with a variety of characteristics. Children's Geographies Paper, final before Proofs influenced by the wider socio-spatial and economic-political contexts of these social relationships, rather than solely by the nature of the ties (Foley and Edwards, 1999).…”