The embodiment of social capital at individual and communal levels

2019 ◽  
Vol 39 (9/10) ◽  
pp. 812-830
Author(s):  
Anson Au
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Social Dynamics ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Social Exchanges ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Social ◽  
New Directions ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Dynamics Of Action

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to review the study of social capital focused on the level at which it is embodied, cross-comparing two prominent camps that have emerged in the social capital literature: a communal level and an individual level. Design/methodology/approach This paper reviews the intersections and departures between communal level and individual level conceptualizations of social capital according to the social dynamics of action within social exchanges that they stimulate, the processes by which social capital is activated/mobilized and the rewards they yield, and their linkages to inequality through network diversity. Findings This paper articulates new directions for future research in social capital: more analytical precision for studying returns to social capital; more efforts to transcend the individual-communal divide; the depreciation of social capital or tie decay; and recognizing the importance of ties whose value does not come from the ability to provide instrumental gain, but just from their very existence. Originality/value Social capital has informed many influential agendas in the social sciences, but the sheer volume of which has largely gone unscoped. This paper reviews this literature to provide an accessible introduction to social capital, organized by social processes foundational to sociology and a novel contribution to the literature by articulating new directions for future research in the area.

Social capital inequality and capital structure of new firms in a developing country: the role of bank ties

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Vi Dung Ngo ◽  
Quang Evansluong ◽  
Frank Janssen ◽  
Duc Khuong Nguyen
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Moderating Effects ◽  
New Firms ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Manufacturing Enterprises ◽  
Business Association ◽  
The Social ◽  
The Individual

PurposeThis article aims to clarify the role of social capital and social capital inequality embedded in bank ties in enabling and diversifying new firms' debt use.Design/methodology/approachThe study adopts a quantitative method, using an unbalanced longitudinal dataset covering three years–2011, 2013 and 2015–from a project on small manufacturing enterprises in Vietnam. The sample consists of 513 firm-year observations.FindingsNetwork extensity and network mobilisation increase new firms' debt use. Differences in ascribed and attained social statuses (i.e. gender, generation, business association membership and political affiliation) result in social capital inequality between entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurs who are of a younger generation, have higher levels of education and are not members of the Communist Party benefit less from social capital than those who are older, have less education and are party members.Originality/valueThe effects of access to and the use of the social capital embedded in bank ties on new firms' debt use are both studied. The sources of social capital inequality are investigated at the individual level through distinguishing ascribed and attained social statuses and explained by two mechanisms: capital deficit and return deficit. The moderating effects of social capital inequality are also examined.

Exploring antecedents of social media usage in B2B: a systematic review

2018 ◽  
Vol 41 (6) ◽  
pp. 629-656 ◽  
Author(s):  
Federica Pascucci ◽  
Chiara Ancillai ◽  
Silvio Cardinali
Keyword(s):  
Social Media ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Research Area ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Social ◽  
Managerial Implications ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Interest In Research

PurposeThis paper aims to review the state-of-the-art literature on social media adoption in business-to-business (B2B) contexts to propose an inclusive and theoretical viewpoint to understand the antecedents of this phenomenon.Design/methodology/approachThis paper presents the results of a systematic literature review. For this purpose, 29 studies published in academic journals, books and conference papers in the field of marketing and management from 2001 to 2017 were analysed.FindingsThe results show that the number of studies has increased in the past five years. Three different groups of antecedents are identified by considering the nature of these factors (personal, organisational and external) and analysed at two different levels of adoption: individual and firm/function. Managerial implications and future research insights are provided.Research limitations/implicationsThis research area deserves much more attention, both theoretical and empirical, to analyse the existing classifications and develop new categories of antecedents of social media adoption in B2B. Further studies are needed on the individual level of adoption, on new skills and capabilities required to use social media as well as on the social factors influencing usage.Practical implicationsThe literature review allows to understand the role of personal, organisational and social antecedents and suggest ways to improve the level and quality of adoption.Originality/valueDespite a considerable interest in research on social media, this paper provides the first complete framework in the new field of study concerning social media adoption in B2B.

Business plan competitions in developed and emerging economies

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 81-97 ◽  
Author(s):  
Syed Awais Ahmad Tipu
Keyword(s):  
Emerging Economies ◽  
Business Plan ◽  
Integrated Approach ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Journal Articles ◽  
Research Gaps ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Academic Literature ◽  
The Individual

Purpose This paper aims to review the academic literature on business plan competitions in developed and emerging economies to assess the contribution to the knowledge so far and identify research gaps. Design/methodology/approach A variety of databases (such as ABI/Inform Global, Academic Search Complete, Business Source Premier and Emerald Full Text) were used to find peer-reviewed journal articles. Regardless of time, different search terms were used to find relevant journal articles such as business plan competitions, business plan contests, business plan teams, business plan judges, business plan development and business plan scores. After a careful review of the identified articles, a total of 22 articles were included in the final review. The articles in the final set were manually coded using the thematic codes. Findings Despite the popularity of business plan competitions, limited academic literature exists, particularly in the context of emerging economies. A total of 16 out of 22 studies are conducted in developed economies. The findings suggest that the literature on business plan competitions is largely centered on the structure of business plan competitions, the characteristics of the participating teams and the benefits of business plan competitions. The individual level benefits of business plan competitions include the development of entrepreneurial skills, opportunity for networking and access to mentors. Business plan competitions can be better aligned with public policy, particularly in case of emerging economies. Therefore, a more focused and integrated approach among industry, academia and government in encouraging business plan competitions could potentially make a far-reaching impact in establishing an enterprising society. While much is known about the structure and the benefits of business plan competitions, there are various research gaps which need to be addressed. Originality/value The current paper is the first identifiable review of the literature on business plan competitions. The proposed questions for future research will potentially help in addressing the identified research gaps.

Through the lens of social capital: a research agenda for studying IT outsourcing

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 107-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beena George ◽  
Rudy Hirschheim ◽  
Alexander von Stetten
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Research Agenda ◽  
Success Factors ◽  
Past Research ◽  
It Outsourcing ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Social ◽  
New Research ◽  
Comprehensive Framework

Purpose – This paper proposes a new research agenda for information technology (IT) outsourcing,motivated by the belief that the social capital concept enables IT outsourcing researchers to capture more of the nuances of the client–vendor relationship in IT outsourcing arrangements. Design/methodology/approach – The paper builds a comprehensive framework of social capital based on Nahapiet and Ghoshal (1998) to examine the IT outsourcing life cycle. Past research on IT outsourcing is examined applying the parameters of the framework to identify issues that have been addressed in research on IT outsourcing and to uncover the gaps in past research. Findings – The social capital framework is applied to IT outsourcing which suggests new avenues for future outsourcing research. Research limitations/implications – While past research has identified success factors for IT outsourcing, a significant number of outsourcing arrangement still fail to meet expectations. The research agenda presented in this paper encourages an examination of IT outsourcing from a different perspective to determine how to successfully manage IT outsourcing. Originality/value – The paper provides a new framework that is useful for identifying the relationships among past research in IT outsourcing as well as for identifying potential topics for future research.

Individual difference factors related to anthropomorphic tendency

2016 ◽  
Vol 50 (5/6) ◽  
pp. 973-1002 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kate Letheren ◽  
Kerri-Ann L. Kuhn ◽  
Ian Lings ◽  
Nigel K. Ll. Pope
Keyword(s):  
Individual Difference ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Individual Characteristics ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Personal Connection ◽  
Experiential Thinking ◽  
Psychology Literature ◽  
The Individual

Purpose This paper aims to addresses an important gap in anthropomorphism research by examining the individual-level factors that correlate with anthropomorphic tendency. Design/methodology/approach The extant psychology, marketing and consumer psychology literature is reviewed, and eight hypotheses devised. Data from 509 online survey respondents are analysed to identify individual characteristics associated with anthropomorphic tendency. Findings The results reveal that anthropomorphic tendency varies by individual and is significantly related to personality, age, relationship status, personal connection to animals and experiential thinking. Research limitations/implications This paper extends on recent research into the individual nature of anthropomorphic tendency, once thought to be a universal trait. Given that this paper is the first of its kind, testing of further traits is merited. It is suggested that future research further examine personality, as well as other elements of individual difference, and test the role of anthropomorphic tendency in the development of processing abilities with age. Practical implications Findings show that anthropomorphic tendency may prove to be a key variable in the segmentation of markets and the design of marketing communications, and that younger, single, more creative, conscientious consumers are an appropriate target for anthropomorphic messages. The importance of personal connection to animals, as well as experiential thinking, is also highlighted. Originality/value Given the importance of anthropomorphic tendency for the processing of messages involving non-human endorsers, as well as the formation of relevant attitudes and behaviours, this paper fulfils an identified need to further understand the characteristics of those high on this tendency.

scholarly journals Toward understanding three phases of individual responses to paradox

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gunnar Birkelund
Keyword(s):  
Future Research ◽  
Individual Response ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Three Phase ◽  
Paradox Theory ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Three Phases

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to further paradox research at the individual level through applying a framework of three phases of individual response to paradox – recognition, understanding and behaviour.Design/methodology/approachCritical and integrative review of previous studies of individual responses to paradox.FindingsThe role of individual understanding is limited in extant research on individual responses to paradox. Individual understanding tends to be equated with behaviour, and thus knowledge of understanding is not differentiated enough, neither is the link between understanding and behaviour sufficiently developed.Research limitations/implicationsThe review does not consider the relationship to interactional, organisational and environmental contexts. The recommendation for future research is to explore individual responses to paradox more entirely, to provide an adequate ground for extending paradox theory across individual and broader levels of analysis.Originality/valueThe review contributes to paradox theory by separating individual understanding and then providing a framework in which recognition, understanding and behaviour can be reintegrated in new ways. In addition to more accurate discernment of individual understanding and of combinations of responses across phases, the three-phase framework facilitates investigation of more intricate influences across phases and paths of evolution of such responses over time.

Do local circumstances affect attitudes towards local social policies? Exploring the role of economic, political and demographic conditions

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Babs Broekema ◽  
Menno Fenger ◽  
Jeroen van der Waal
Keyword(s):  
Local Level ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Social Policies ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Survey Item ◽  
Political Conditions ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Election Studies

PurposeThis article aims to explore whether and how economic, political and demographic municipal conditions shape citizens' attitudes regarding decentralised social policies.Design/methodology/approachThe authors analysed the 2018 wave of the Dutch Local Election Studies, which includes a novel survey item asking respondents whether they prefer local social policies to be primarily: (1) protection-based, (2) cohesion-building or (3) activation-based. The authors appended context indicators to that survey and performed multilevel logistic regression analyses (1,913 respondents nested in 336 municipalities).FindingsAt the individual level, these preferences are affected by gender, age, income, education and political inclination, as expected. However, preferences towards local social policies are not shaped by local economic, demographic or political conditions. The authors discuss the implications of these findings for future research.Originality/valueBy using unique data, including a newly developed survey item, this study is the first to explore whether and how municipal conditions shape preferences regarding local welfare. Understanding those preferences is increasingly important as many Western European countries have decentralised swathes of social policies from the national to the local level in recent decades.

Microcredit and political empowerment in Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan

2015 ◽  
Vol 14 (2) ◽  
pp. 130-148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oksan Bayulgen
Keyword(s):  
Political Development ◽  
Group Analysis ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Extensive Literature ◽  
Microfinance Institutions ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Political Empowerment ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Gender Type

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyze the political effects of microcredit. The author provides the theoretical connections between microfinance and political empowerment and tests them in the context of Central Asia and the Caucasus, a region that is significantly lagging in political development and yet has a growing microfinance potential. Design/methodology/approach – The author conducted a total of 100 in-depth interviews with microcredit clients in Kazakhstan and Azerbaijan in June 2010 and January 2011, respectively. The author chose my client samples randomly from two of the largest non-governmental microfinance institutions in these countries. Findings – The findings of the survey reveal that microloans have only led to modest improvements in the socioeconomic status of the clients and had almost no effect on their political empowerment. Disaggregating the data further in terms of gender, type of loan and location of credit does not change the overall trends but reveals that to the extent that any political empowerment took place, group clients (mostly women) in urban settings were more aware and involved in political issues than individual clients in the villages. Research limitations/implications – Even with a carefully thought-out design, it is not clear how much the responses reflect the true and complicated impact of microfinance on the clients’ lives, a challenge that may be overcome in future research with focus group analysis or an ethnographic analysis of microcredit clients over a long period of time. Practical implications – Notwithstanding these shortcomings, these observations can help inform microfinance institutions, donor organizations and governments about the true potential of microfinance. A realization of the limits of this unique development tool may prove useful in reorienting the goals of foreign aid and designing a more effective approach to development. Originality/value – Despite the extensive literature on the economic and social effects of microcredit, very little attention has been given to how economic empowerment generated by microcredit can translate into political empowerment at the individual level. This paper lays out the theoretical reasons for why such a relationship might exist and tests these hypotheses systematically in two countries, taking into account gender, type of loan instrument and location of the loan.

Weighing the odds: an exploration of resistance to obesity and overweight

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 421-441 ◽  
Author(s):  
Denise Conroy ◽  
Sandra D. Smith ◽  
Catherine Frethey-Bentham
Keyword(s):  
Overweight And Obesity ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Consumer Resistance ◽  
Under Nutrition ◽  
Economic Framework ◽  
Obesity And Overweight ◽  
The Social ◽  
Societal Level ◽  
The Individual

Purpose In 2018, we have surpassed the population landmark of 7.5 billion, and yesterday’s global crisis of under-nutrition in poorer nations is now accompanied by a journey into overweight and obesity. The purpose of our research is to focus on the health and resistance of those who avoid overweight and obesity rather than continuing to focus on the pathology and disease of this phenomenon. Design/methodology/approach Taking a consumer-centric perspective and using the lens of the social-economic framework, the authors report qualitative research conducted with 31 young people (ages 17-26) who have been resistant to weight gain in an increasingly obesogenic environment, followed by a survey of the general population, n = 921. The authors look at this type of consumer resistance to better understand how to develop government and community leadership and build more obesogenically resilient societies. Findings The findings support the contention that obesity is a social problem that requires a social solution. Originality/value The main contribution to the conversation addressing increasing levels of overweight and obesity is that this research demonstrates that these are complex social problems and require complex intervention at the societal level, not the individual level.

Determinants of solo and employer entrepreneurship in Visegrád countries: findings from the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
pp. 447-464
Author(s):  
Ondřej Dvouletý ◽  
Marko Orel
Keyword(s):  
Czech Republic ◽  
Methodological Approach ◽  
Working Hours ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Logistic Regression Models ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Visegrád Countries

Purpose This study aims to extend the existing body of literature on the individual-level determinants of self-employed persons with (employer entrepreneurs) and without employees (solo self-employed individuals) from the perspective of four post-communist economies (i.e. Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia). Design/methodology/approach The methodological approach is based on the three harmonised waves (2005, 2010 and 2015) of the European Survey on Working Conditions (EWCS). Multi-variate logistic regression models are used to determine the individual-level differences among employees, solo self-employed individuals and job creators in the selected group of countries. Findings The results show significant differences among employees, solo self-employed individuals and job creators, especially when it comes to the role of age, gender, education, previous experience, number of working hours and their determination. Job creators in Visegrád countries have, on average, more years of experience, and higher levels of education (tertiary), than wage-employees. Research limitations/implications This study provides a series of recommendations for future research on the role of family- and household-related characteristics, entrepreneurship-specific education and migration background. Originality/value The previous research on individual determinants of entrepreneurial engagement in Visegrád region was mainly based on the data from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor. This study offers a novel perspective based on the EWCS data.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document