Social Capital Activation and Job Searching: Embedding the Use of Weak Ties in the American Institutional Context

Sharone, Ofer

doi:10.1177/0730888414538432

Cited by 37 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…In both the US and China, although merit is supposed to govern the access to jobs and opportunities, social networks and social connections play a major role in the outcomes of who gets what, especially with regard to jobs. Increasingly, research has found similar effects of social networks on job search and outcomes across countries, although the nature of social ties may differ along with how readily they offer assistance (Cingano & Rosolia, 2012;DeGraaf & Flap, 1998;Gerber & Mayorova, 2010;Huo, Huang, & Napier, 2002;Korpi, 2001;Ma, Huang, & Shenkar, 2011;Obukhova, 2012;Sharone, 2014;Yakubovic, 2005). Thus, despite institutional, normative, and sometimes legal prescriptions to ostensibly limit the role of favoritism or advantage across countries, social ties in many contexts provide some with greater opportunity than others, and hence, shape important life outcomes to some degree.…”

Section: The Structure Of Labor Markets In the Us And Chinamentioning

confidence: 99%

The Structure of Labor Markets in the US and China: Social Capital andGuanxi

DiTomaso

Bian

2018

Manag. Organ. Rev.

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Despite the major cultural and political differences between the United States and China, in both countries access to jobs is supposed to be guided by fair and equitable procedures. In the US, there is a presumption of an open labor market in which potential employees compete on the basis of their qualifications, where the fairness of decisions is guided by anti-discrimination laws and normative organizational policies. In China, although there is a history of close relationships that guide the exchange of favors, following the 1949 revolution, Communist Party leaders were given the authority to allocate positions in ways that were supposed to eliminate special privileges of class and background. Yet recent research has suggested that social connections are an important part of getting a job in both the US and China for two-thirds to three-quarters of job seekers. In the US context, such connections are described as social capital. In the Chinese context, connections are defined as guanxi. In this article, we review research on labor market processes in both the US and China to address three important questions: (a) How can we understand the similar functioning of labor markets in such distinct cultural and political systems as the US and China? (b) What are the mechanisms or processes by which people find jobs in the US and China, and how are people able to access these mechanisms or processes in the context of constraining social structures and legal environments? and (c) What are the theoretical implications of the ‘generalized particularism’ that seems to shape labor markets in both the US and China.

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Section: The Structure Of Labor Markets In the Us And Chinamentioning

confidence: 99%

The Structure of Labor Markets in the US and China: Social Capital andGuanxi

DiTomaso

Bian

2018

Manag. Organ. Rev.

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“…For example, while most low‐income African Americans interviewed by Sandra Smith () welcomed information from personal contacts in the job search, one‐quarter were reluctant to do so. Smith traces this variation to factors at multiple levels, from the job seeker's reputation to institutional features of the labor market (see also Sharone ). Mobilization also varies based on attributes of the individual's social network.…”

Section: Social Network Mobilizationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Subject to Evaluation: How Parents Assess and Mobilize Information from Social Networks in School Choice

Fong

2018

Sociological Forum

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A rich literature examines how information spreads through social networks to influence life opportunities. However, receiving information does not guarantee its use in decision making. This article analyzes information evaluation as a fundamental component of social network mobilization. The case of school choice, where the value of information may be more uncertain, brings this evaluative dimension to the forefront. Interviews with 55 parents in Boston show how parents selecting schools assess their social network ties as information sources, privileging information from those they perceive to have affinity and authority. These evaluative criteria map onto disparate networks to engender unequal mobilization of this information. The findings illuminate mechanisms sustaining inequality in social network mobilization and reorient scholars to consider processes underlying information use alongside information diffusion to attain a more complete understanding of how network resources are mobilized in action.

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“…• Establishing a privileged channel for spreading information about the job opportunities offered or created. The networks are then considered a means of circulating information within and between social groups, especially in wealthier groups (Tholen et al 2013;Sharone 2014).…”

Section: Quantitative and Qualitative Datamentioning

confidence: 99%

Using your ties to get a worse job? The differential effects of social networks on quality of employment in Colombia

Deguilhem

Berrou

Combarnous

2019

Review of Social Economy

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This article examines the effect of social networks by investigating how mobilizing family, friendship or kindship ties in job searches affects the quality of employment (QoE) using a mixed approach. Drawing from socioeconomic literature on the segmented labor market, the authors propose an original and multidimensional measure of job quality and a fruitful estimation of the effect of social networks on QoE that allows for dealing with complex inter-groups heterogeneity. Using the Great Integrated Household Survey (GIHS) and a sample on Bogota's workers in 2013, they provide empirical support that the use of ties is negatively correlated with the QoE for those who are vulnerable. Likewise, the use of social relations is not significant for protected workers. Complemented by focus groups interviews, these results raise questions about the difference prevailing in relational practices between necessity networks for precarious workers and opportunity networks for protected workers in the Colombian capital.

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Social Capital Activation and Job Searching: Embedding the Use of Weak Ties in the American Institutional Context

Cited by 37 publications

References 33 publications

The Structure of Labor Markets in the US and China: Social Capital andGuanxi

The Structure of Labor Markets in the US and China: Social Capital andGuanxi

Subject to Evaluation: How Parents Assess and Mobilize Information from Social Networks in School Choice

Using your ties to get a worse job? The differential effects of social networks on quality of employment in Colombia

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