A growing number of sociologists, political scientists, economists, and organizational theorists have invoked the concept of social capital in the search for answers to a broadening range of questions being confronted in their own fields. Seeking to clarify the concept and help assess its utility for organizational theory, we synthesize the theoretical research undertaken in these various disciplines and develop a common conceptual framework that identifies the sources, benefits, risks, and contingencies of social capital.

https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/4134367.pdf

Social Capital: Prospects for a New Concept

This paper presents evidence that "social capital" matters for measurable economic performance, using indicators of trust and civic norms from the World Values Surveys for a sample of 29 market economies. Memberships in formal groups—Putnam's measure of social capital—is not associated with trust or with improved economic performance. We find trust and civic norms are stronger in nations with higher and more equal incomes, with institutions that restrain predatory actions of chief executives, and with better-educated and ethnically homogeneous populations.

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Does Social Capital Have an Economic Payoff? A Cross-Country Investigation

Offering a unifying theoretical perspective not readily available in any other text, this innovative guide to econometrics uses simple geometrical arguments to develop students' intuitive understanding of basic and advanced topics, emphasizing throughout the practical applications of modern theory and nonlinear techniques of estimation. One theme of the text is the use of artificial regressions for estimation, reference, and specification testing of nonlinear models, including diagnostic tests for parameter constancy, serial correlation, heteroscedasticity, and other types of mis-specification. Explaining how estimates can be obtained and tests can be carried out, the authors go beyond a mere algebraic description to one that can be easily translated into the commands of a standard econometric software package. Covering an unprecedented range of problems with a consistent emphasis on those that arise in applied work, this accessible and coherent guide to the most vital topics in econometrics today is indispensable for advanced students of econometrics and students of statistics interested in regression and related topics. It will also suit practising econometricians who want to update their skills. Flexibly designed to accommodate a variety of course levels, it offers both complete coverage of the basic material and separate chapters on areas of specialized interest.

Estimation and Inference in Econometrics

In the 1990s the concept of social capital defined here as the norms and networks that enable people to act collectively enjoyed a remarkable rise to prominence across all the social science disciplines. The authors trace the evolution of social capital research as it pertains to economic development and identify four distinct approaches the research has taken : communitarian, networks, institutional, and synergy. The evidence suggests that of the four, the synergy view, with its emphasis on incorporating different levels and dimensions of social capital and its recognition of the positive and negative outcomes that social capital can generate, has the greatest empirical support and lends itself best to comprehensive and coherent policy prescriptions. The authors argue that a significant virtue of the idea of and discourse on social capital is that it helps to bridge orthodox divides among scholars, practitioners, and policymakers.

/pdf/social-capital-implications-for-development-theory-research-1639tar0kx.pdf

Social capital: implications for development theory, research, and policy

Trust: The Social Virtues and the Creation of Prosperity

Matching a measure of social capital with data on household income in certain rural villages in Tanzania shows that social capital is indeed both capital (in that it raises incomes) and social (in that household incomes depend on village, not just household, social capital). Narayan and Pritchett construct a measure of social capital in rural Tanzania, using data from the Tanzania Social Capital and Poverty Survey (SCPS), a large-scale survey that asked individuals about the extent and characteristics of their associational activity and their trust in various institutions and individuals. They match this measure of social capital with data on household income in the same villages (both from the SCPS and from an earlier household survey, the Human Resources Development Survey). In doing so, they show that social capital is indeed both capital (in that it raises incomes) and social (in that household incomes depend on village, not just household, social capital). The magnitude of social capital's effect on incomes is impressive: a one standard deviation increase in village social capital increases a household proxy for income by at least 20 to 30 percent. This is as great an impact as an equivalent increase in nonfarming assets, or a tripling of the level of education. Data from the two surveys make it possible to identify some of the proximate channels through which social capital affects incomes: better publicly provided services, more community activity, greater use of modern agricultural inputs, and greater use of credit in agriculture. This paper - a joint product of Social Development, and Poverty and Human Resources, Development Research Group - is part of a larger effort in the Bank to understand the social determinants of sustainable development.

Cents and Sociability: Household Income and Social Capital in Rural Tanzania

As the second book in a three-part series entitled Voices of the Poor, "Crying out for Change" accounts for the voices from comparative fieldwork among twenty three countries. Through participatory, and qualitative research methods, the book presents very directly, poor people's own voices, and the realities of their lives. It outlines the multidimensional aspects of well-being, and how poor people see it, highlighting that in material terms, "enough" is not a lot for a good life, and, analyzes social well-being, security, and freedom of choice and action, in contrast to the "ill-being" aspects of material absence, reflecting on the experiences of humiliation, shame, anguish. and grief. The struggle for livelihoods is described through the scarcity of rural production, the diversified cities' bondage, and, the limited opportunities of life, and individual breakthroughs challenging their livelihoods. Further analysis reflect on the inadequacy, isolation, and lack of access to infrastructure; on the health aspects of mind and body; on gender relations in troubled subjugation; on social exclusion; and, on the uncertainties for survival. It finally challenges the meaning of development, and of power, calling for change, from material poverty to adequate assets and livelihoods, from exclusion to inclusion, organization, and empowerment.

Voices of the Poor: Crying Out for Change

The idea of social capital has enjoyed a remarkable rise to prominence in both the theoretical and applied social science literature over the last decade. While lively debate has accompanied that journey, thereby helping to advance our thinking and to clarify areas of agreement and disagreement, much still remains to be done. One approach that we hope can help bring further advances for both scholars and practitioners is the provision of a set of empirical tools for measuring social capital. The purpose of this paper is to introduce such a tool-the Integrated Questionnaire for the Measurement of Social Capital (SC-IQ)-with a focus on applications in developing countries. The tool aims to generate quantitative data on various dimensions of social capital as part of a larger household survey (such as the Living Standards Measurement Survey or a household income/expenditure survey). Specifically, six dimensions are considered: groups and networks; trust and solidarity; collective action and cooperation; information and communication; social cohesion and inclusion; empowerment and political action. The paper addresses sampling and data collection issues for implementing the SC-IQ and provides guidance for the use and analysis of data. The tool has been pilot-tested in Albania and Nigeria and a review of lessons learned is presented.

https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/15033/281100PAPER0Measuring0social0capital.pdf;sequence=1

Measuring Social Capital : An Integrated Questionnaire

https://clusterobservatory.in/articles/Article%20No.%20162.pdf

Deepa Narayan

Papers

Social capital: implications for development theory, research, and policy

Cents and Sociability: Household Income and Social Capital in Rural Tanzania

Voices of the Poor: Crying Out for Change

Measuring Social Capital : An Integrated Questionnaire

Bonds and Bridges: Social Capital and Poverty