José Atilano Pena-López

Bio: José Atilano Pena-López is an academic researcher from University of A Coruña. The author has contributed to research in topics: Social reproduction & Individual capital. The author has an hindex of 4, co-authored 4 publications receiving 81 citations.

Individual Social Capital and Subjective Wellbeing: The Relational Goods

Abstract: In this paper we analyze the non-instrumental dimension of social capital and its effects on subjective well-being. In the first part, we define the characteristics of production and consumption of relational goods. The second section analyses the influence of the different expressions of relational goods and social capital on individual subjective well-being. In the third, we test the explanatory power of this variable on the Easterlin’s paradox using the results of a survey on individual social capital in Spain. The main findings from the empirical analysis for Spanish society allow us to strengthen the hypothesis. We found a weak explanatory capacity of income or educational level or instrumental dimensions of social capital (expert mobilization) while a strong link between expressions of relational goods (domestic mobilization, household stability, partnership, trust and security in the environment) was found.

Clarifying the concept of social capital through its three perspectives: individualistic, communitarian and macrosocial

Abstract: The concept of social capital has received increasing attention in recent years. The complexity and multidimensionality that accompany the variable of social capital have caused confusion and ambiguity. This article presents a synthesis of social capital in three perspectives. From the individualistic or micro-social perspective, social capital is an "individual resource" that consists of the networks of relations of the focal subject that bring it a set of instrumental and expressive resources. For the communitarian or meso-social perspective, social capital is a "community resource" or set of attributes and properties present in the social structure (shared norms and values, private trust, closure ...) that facilitate its functioning and collective action. Finally, for the macrosocial perspective, social capital is a "macrosocial and macroinstitutional resource" resting on aspects such as civic-mindedness, general trust and social cohesion, which favors the functioning of the economy and society in general.

La interrelación entre el "capital humano" y el "capital social": Una aproximación al caso español

Abstract: espanolEl presente articulo tiene por objeto analizar el vinculo bidireccional existente entre dos variables claves en el desarrollo economico y la sostenibilidad social: el capital humano y el capital social. Tras introducir ambos conceptos, se aborda desde el plano teorico la influencia bidireccional entre el capital humano (educacion, conocimientos tecnicos, experiencia del individuo-trabajador) y el capital social individual (red de relaciones interpersonales del sujeto focal). En este sentido, la educacion extiende la red social del individuo y amplia el conjunto de recursos a los que puede acceder. Asimismo, y en sentido inverso, el capital social individual favorece tanto la educacion del sujeto como la productividad de su capital humano. La segunda parte del articulo contrasta desde un punto de vista empirico la interrelacion entre el capital humano y el capital social individual en el caso espanol. Los resultados confirman la bidireccionalidad de las relaciones y la necesidad de profundizar en la causalidad de los procesos. EnglishThe aim of this article is to analyze the bidirectional link between two key variables in economic development and social sustainability: human capital and social capital. After introducing both concepts, the influence of human capital (education, technical knowledge, experience of the individual-worker) in the individual social capital (network of interpersonal relationships of the focal subject) is approached from the theoretical point of view. In this sense, education extends the social network of the individual and broadens the set of resources that can be accessed. Likewise, and in the opposite direction, individual social capital favors both the education of the subject and the productivity of its human capital. The second part of the article contrasts from an empirical point of view the interrelation between human capital and individual social capital in the Spanish case. The results confirm the bidirectionality of the relationships and the need to deepen the causality of the processes.

Civic Capital as the Missing Link

Abstract: This chapter reviews the recent debate about the role of social capital in economics. We argue that all the difficulties this concept has encountered in economics are due to a vague and excessively broad definition. For this reason, we restrict social capital to the set of values and beliefs that help cooperation - which for clarity we label civic capital. We argue that this definition differentiates social capital from human capital and satisfies the properties of the standard notion of capital. We then argue that civic capital can explain why differences in economic performance persist over centuries and discuss how the effect of civic capital can be distinguished empirically from other variables that affect economic performance and its persistence, including institutions and geography.

Formal Institutions and Subjective Well-Being: Revisiting the Cross-Country Evidence

Abstract: A long tradition in economics explores the association between the quality of formal institutions and economic performance. The literature on the relationship between such institutions and happiness is, however, rather limited. In this paper, we revisit the findings from recent cross-country studies on the institutions-happiness association. Our findings suggest that the conclusions reached by previous studies are fairly sensitive to the specific measure of ‘happiness’ used. In addition, the results indicate that the welfare effects of policies may differ across phases of a country’s economic development. This bears important policy implications which we discuss in the concluding section of the paper.

Social Capital and Individual Happiness in Europe

Abstract: This paper explores the relationship between social capital and happiness both in Europe as a whole, as well as in its four main geographical macro-regions – North, South, East and West – separately. We test the hypothesis of whether social capital, in its three-fold definition established by Coleman (1988) – trust, social interaction, and norms and sanctions – influences individual happiness across European countries and regions. The concept of social capital is further enriched by incorporating Putnam- (1993) and Olson- (1982) type variables on associational activity. Using ordinal logistic regression analysis on data for 48,583 individuals from 25 European countries, we reach three main findings. First, social capital matters for happiness across the three dimensions considered. Second, the main drivers of the effects of social capital on happiness appear to be informal social interaction and general social, as well as institutional trust. And third, there are significant differences in how social capital interacts with happiness across different areas of Europe, with the connection being at is weakest in the Nordic countries.

Impactos del confinamiento por el COVID-19 entre universitarios: Satisfacción Vital, Resiliencia y Capital Social Online

Abstract: La excepcionalidad derivada de la situacion de confinamiento por la pandemia del COVID-19 ha afectado a todos los ambitos de nuestro funcionamiento como sociedad: el relacional, el sanitario, el economico, etc y, por supuesto, el educativo Este estudio se centra en el impacto en dichos ambitos y el papel jugado por aspectos como la resiliencia, el capital social online y la satisfaccion vital Para ello se llevo a cabo un estudio cuantitativo de caracter exploratorio sobre 343 estudiantes universitarios La conclusion mas destacada es constatar el fuerte impacto que el confinamiento ha tenido sobre la situacion vital del estudiantado en el ambito psicologico y academico, principalmente, y el importante papel de la relacion con la satisfaccion vital y la resiliencia, fundamentalmente Se concluye con la necesidad de trabajar la cuestion de la resiliencia desde la universidad y se dan una serie de claves a tal fin