scholarly journals Informal Networks Social Capital of Fathers: What Does the Social Engagement Survey Tell Us?

2006 ◽  
Vol 83 (2) ◽  
pp. 351-373 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zenaida Ravanera
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Social Engagement ◽  
Informal Networks ◽  
The Social

The role of public libraries in the development of social capital in local communities – a theoretical study

2021 ◽  
Vol 42 (3) ◽  
pp. 184-196
Author(s):  
Maja Dorota Wojciechowska
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Social Engagement ◽  
Social Life ◽  
Public Libraries ◽  
Local Communities ◽  
Social Needs ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Impact

PurposeSocial capital, understood as intangible community values available through a network of connections, is a factor in the development of societies and improving quality of life. It helps to remove economic inequalities and prevent poverty and social exclusion, stimulate social and regional development, civic attitudes and social engagement and build a civic society as well as local and regional identity. Many of these tasks may be implemented by libraries, which, apart from providing access to information, may also offer a number of services associated with social needs. The purpose of this paper is to present the roles and functions that libraries may serve in local communities in terms of assistance, integration and development based on classical social capital theories.Design/methodology/approachThe paper reviews the classical concepts of social capital in the context of libraries. It analyses the findings of Pierre-Félix Bourdieu, James Coleman, Francis Fukuyama, Robert Putnam, Nan Lin, Ronald Stuart Burt, Wayne Baker and Alejandro Portes. Based on their respective concepts, the paper analyses the role of the contemporary library in the social life of local communities. In particular, it focuses on the possible new functions that public libraries may serve.FindingsA critical review of the concept of social capital revealed certain dependencies between libraries and their neighbourhoods. With new services that respond to the actual social needs, libraries may serve as a keystone, namely they may integrate, animate and engage local communities. This, however, requires a certain approach to be adopted by the personnel and governing authorities as well as infrastructure and tangible resources.Originality/valueThe social engagement of libraries is usually described from the practical perspective (reports on the services provided) or in the context of research on the impact of respective projects on specific groups of users (research reports). A broader approach, based on original social theories, is rarely encountered. The paper draws on classical concepts of social capital and is a contribution to the discussion on possible uses of those concepts based on an analysis of the role of libraries in social life and in strengthening the social capital of local communities.

Social Status Perception and Individual Social Capital: Evidence from the US

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alessandro Bucciol ◽  
Simona Cicognani ◽  
Luca Zarri
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Social Status ◽  
Social Engagement ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Neighborhood Cohesion ◽  
Individual Social Capital ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Us ◽  
Objectively Measured ◽  
Negative Support

Abstract This paper provides evidence that individual social capital contributes to our understanding of where individuals locate themselves in the social ladder, also when their objective location within society (measured in terms of income, wealth, education and job) is considered. Using large-scale longitudinal data from the US Health and Retirement Study, we assess individual social capital by means of a multidimensional approach and consider (number, intensity and quality of) respondents’ friendships, prosocial behavior, social engagement and neighborhood cohesion. Our findings indicate that individual social capital plays a role in affecting subjective status, as self-perceived status correlates positively with neighborhood cohesion and negatively with negative support from friends, after controlling for objectively measured social status.

scholarly journals Does Participation in Social Networks Foster Trust and Respect for Other People—Evidence from Poland

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 1733 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beata Łopaciuk-Gonczaryk
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Social Networks ◽  
Fixed Effects ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Social Trust ◽  
Informal Networks ◽  
Generalized Trust ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Family

A shortage of social capital may hinder sustainable development. According to the “social capital dream” there is a virtuous circle between participation in social networks, trust, and cooperation. It is a promising idea for proponents of sustainability, as it is easier to promote participation than affect social norms. Participation may, however, lead to particularized and not generalized trust, which hinders social inclusion and undermines the idea of a sustainable society. The aim of this paper is to validate the role of participation in informal and formal social networks in enhancing social trust and respect towards others. The relevance of both strong and weak ties is considered. Fixed-effects modeling on three-wave data from a Polish social survey is utilized. An increase in generalized trust corresponds with an increase in the acquaintances network, a decrease in the family and friends network, and an increase in volunteering. A rise in expectations about the cooperativeness of others is enhanced by an increase in the family and friends network, and by volunteering. The lack of respect for some groups of people is not affected by participation in organizations and informal networks. Overall within-person heterogeneity is small, suggesting that possibilities for fostering moral trust by participation are limited.

scholarly journals The social capitals of recovery in mental health

2018 ◽  
Vol 24 (4) ◽  
pp. 384-402
Author(s):  
Brian Brown ◽  
Sally Baker
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Capital ◽  
Social Engagement ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Sense Of Self ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Professional Attitudes ◽  
Attitudes And Practices ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Capitals

In this article, we examine the process of recovery in people who have undertaken treatment for mental health problems, based on interviews with 34 participants. We describe their experiences through the lens of social capital, focusing on the social networks and relationships within which they are embedded and which they utilise to give purpose and meaning to their lives. The accounts give sense of movement from relationships, institutions and networks which were provided through their engagement with services towards relationships outside the health care system which were more freely chosen and which provided a sense that they were able to achieve recognition and make a contribution. The latter included activities such as art, theatre and sport. The relationships and institutions with which they were engaged via the statutory services were described as burdensome and inappropriate, whereas those which were freely chosen appeared more emancipatory and positively constitutive of identity. We have called this latter experience one of ‘intentional social capital’ because the participants were deliberately choosing and orienting to these networks and were able to derive pleasure and a sense of self from them. The findings have implications for how we see the situation of people recovering from mental health problems inasmuch as professional attitudes and practices could usefully be extended to more fully recognise and encourage wider patterns of social engagement and fulfilment occurring outside the limited contribution of clinical definitions and clinical interventions.

Pushing Elusive Alliances into the Light - Discovering the Value of Informal Networks on the Internet

2004 ◽  
pp. 292-310
Author(s):  
Rian van der Merwe ◽  
Leyland F. Pitt
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Social Network ◽  
Social Relations ◽  
Strategic Alliances ◽  
Codes Of Conduct ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Informal Networks ◽  
The Social ◽  
Network Organizations ◽  
New Form

Sociologists have for many years explored the value of social capital, or the resources embedded in social relations and social network structures. In recent years, organizational forms such as strategic alliances and network organizations have been an important new form of entrepreneurial venture, particularly in business markets. An important and often overlooked type of alliance on the Internet is what we call the “elusive alliance”. These alliances are not formally acknowledged, they are difficult to identify and can often be unknown, even to the members of the alliance themselves. They consist of informal links and social networks on the Internet—unspoken connections and codes of conduct that are extremely valuable because of the social capital embedded in them. This chapter aims to find ways to formally identify and expand these alliances in entrepreneurial ways that will improve their effectiveness, usefulness and ultimately, their social capital, translated into financial returns. We use Social Network Theory as the framework to study these networks.

From Rags to Riches: Tapping the Social Capital within the Solid Waste Informal Sector

2012 ◽  
Vol 1 (2) ◽  
pp. 77-89
Author(s):  
Sameer Prasad ◽  
Ashish Jain ◽  
Jasmine Tata ◽  
Shantha Parthan
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Solid Waste ◽  
Informal Sector ◽  
Qualitative Methodology ◽  
Daily Basis ◽  
Informal Networks ◽  
Large Cities ◽  
The Social ◽  
Promising Area ◽  
Value Streams

Many large cities in the developing world cannot keep up with the vast quantities of solid waste being produced on a daily basis. Often, only 15 per cent of the waste is handled by municipal waste management systems; the rest is handled by the informal sector consisting of networks of rag-pickers who collect, sort, process and dispose of solid waste. These networks and waste streams hold not only economic but also environmental and social value. The current literature, however, has largely ignored this promising area of study, and provides limited direction in terms of the informal networks and their influence on economic, environmental and social outcomes. In this research, we use qualitative methodology and archival data to develop a typology connecting social capital to three value streams within this informal solid waste network. We find that the social capital of the rag-pickers provides superior economic, social and environmental yields. In addition, we discuss the role of NGOs in fostering social capital.

Socio-cultural Resource for Kazakhstan Modernization

2012 ◽  
pp. 74-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Stavinskaya ◽  
E. Nikishina
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Cultural Capital ◽  
Competitive Advantages ◽  
Institutional Reforms ◽  
Cultural Resource ◽  
Bonding Social Capital ◽  
Social And Cultural Capital ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social And Economic Development ◽  
Cultural Features

The opportunities of the competitive advantages use of the social and cultural capital for pro-modernization institutional reforms in Kazakhstan are considered in the article. Based on a number of sociological surveys national-specific features of the cultural capital are marked, which can encourage the country's social and economic development: bonding social capital, propensity for taking executive positions (not ordinary), mobility and adaptability (characteristic for nomad cultures), high value of education. The analysis shows the resources of the productive use of these socio-cultural features.

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