Voices of the poor : poverty and social capital in Tanzania
31 Oct 1997-pp 1-97
TL;DR: In this article, the power and utility of participatory methods for policy research is demonstrated and processes that can tap the knowledge the poor have about their own reality by comparing and contrasting with findings from more conventional household consumption and expenditure surveys, identifying poverty indicators used by local people at the village level.
Abstract: This study reveals the power and utility of participatory methods for policy research It demonstrates practices and processes that can tap the knowledge the poor have about their own reality By comparing and contrasting findings from participatory methods with findings from more conventional household consumption and expenditure surveys, the study identifies poverty indicators used by local people at the village level It also shows how using these measures leads to different conclusions about the causes and nature of poverty and reveals the policy and institutional methods that can best address the problem and how development policies must take gender differences into account if they are to be effective The study also demystifies the concept of social capital at the local level and provides quantifiable evidence that village-level social capital -- membership in groups with particular characteristics -- significantly affects household welfare
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TL;DR: In this article, 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.
Abstract: 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.
4,094 citations
Cites background from "Voices of the poor : poverty and so..."
...In tandem with the Tanzania study, studies of local institutions in three countries—Bolivia (Grootaert and Narayan 2000), Burkina Faso (Grootaert, Oh, and Swamy 1999), and Indonesia (Grootaert 1999)—looked at qualitative service delivery issues and quantified these variables....
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...Based on data from a survey of 1,400 households in 87 villages across Tanzania (Narayan 1997), Narayan and Pritchett (1999) developed an index of social capital at the household and community levels that included density and characteristics of informal and formal groups and networks....
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...This is the case in Benin and Togo, where women, denied access to formal credit, established informal revolving credit societies; in Tanzania the absence of police protection has led some villages to rely on their own system of security guards (Narayan and others 2000)....
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TL;DR: Narayan and Pritchett as discussed by the authors matched a measure of social capital with data on household income in certain rural villages in Tanzania, and showed that social capital is indeed both capital (in that it raises incomes) and social (that household incomes depend on village, not just household, social capital).
Abstract: 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.
1,330 citations
TL;DR: Demand barriers present in low- and middle-income countries and evidence on the effectiveness of interventions to overcome these obstacles are reviewed, suggesting that while barriers are plentiful, there is a dearth of evidence on ways to reduce them.
Abstract: Evidence suggests that demand-side barriers may be as important as supply factors in deterring patients from obtaining treatment. Yet relatively little attention is given, either by policy makers or researchers, to ways of minimizing their effect. These barriers are likely to be more important for the poor and other vulnerable groups, where the costs of access, lack of information and cultural barriers impede them from benefiting from public spending. Demand barriers present in low- and middle-income countries and evidence on the effectiveness of interventions to overcome these obstacles are reviewed. Demand barriers are also shown to be important in richer countries, particularly among vulnerable groups. This suggests that while barriers are plentiful, there is a dearth of evidence on ways to reduce them. Where evidence does exist, the data and methodology for evaluating effectiveness and cost-effectiveness is insufficient. An increased focus on obtaining robust evidence on effective interventions could yield high returns. The likely nature of the interventions means that pragmatic policy routes that go beyond the traditional boundaries of the public health sector are required for implementing the findings.
877 citations
Cites background from "Voices of the poor : poverty and so..."
...The Voices of the Poor cross-country study found general agreement that men were invariably given preferential access to health care over women (Narayan 1997)....
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TL;DR: In this paper, the authors show that associational relationships and social norms of villages in rural Tanzania are both capital and social, and that a village's social capital has an effect on the incomes of the households in that village, an effect that is empirically large, definitely social and plausibly causal.
Abstract: In this article we show that associational relationships and social norms of villages in rural Tanzania are both capital and social. After outlining the various concepts of social capital we tell how and why we created data on social capital using a large-scale household survey in rural Tanzania that was designed to query households about their social connections and attitudes. By using the Social Capital and Poverty Survey (SCPS) and data from a different survey, which also had information on incomes, we show that a village’s social capital has an effect on the incomes of the households in that village, an effect that is empirically large, definitely social, and plausibly causal. Finally, we use the two data sets to examine a number of proximate channels through which social capital appears to operate.
854 citations