Abstract
Social Capital is a concept that describes good quality social relations that can lead to mutual benefit. The fundamental proposition of social capital theory is that networks of relationships grant access to resources, especially information benefits not available to non-members of the network. This study assessed the functions of social capital within Ghanaian organizations, described the patterns and determinants of social capital use within organizations and explored how social capital contributes to firm performance using a sample frame of firms listed in the Ghana Club 100. A questionnaire field survey supplemented by personal interviews was chosen as the most appropriate design for this investigation. Employees were sampled across the organizational hierarchy based on their responsibilities held, positions, type of relationship held with others within the organisation. Data was also collected on the demographic characteristics and organisational dynamics. The results showed that social capital is critical to knowledge sharing in the Ghanaian organization; that it helps to get things done and helps in the attainment of organisational objectives. The findings also suggested that three determinate variables of social capital: reciprocity, trust and institutional ties, have the most significant positive relationship with organisational performance. In view of that, the study recommends that firms take a proactive approach towards promoting, building and maintaining viable social networks within their structures in order to derive maximum benefit from it.
Highlights
The debate surrounding social capital was spearheaded by sociologists and political scientists like Bourdieu (1983; 1986) and Coleman (1988), who stirred academic debates on the social context of education
The random sampling technique was used to select companies listed in the Ghana Club 100 for the survey which was conducted between January and March 2010
We have found support for our hypothesis that social capital plays a key function within organizations in Ghana, facilitating production, enhancing information flow, and generally helping to achieve organisational goals
Summary
The debate surrounding social capital was spearheaded by sociologists and political scientists like Bourdieu (1983; 1986) and Coleman (1988), who stirred academic debates on the social context of education. The World Bank (1999) lent support to the popularity of the concept by singling it out as a useful organising idea. They argued that social cohesion is critical for societies to prosper economically and for development to be sustainable. Social capital is the glue that brings and holds communities together (Cohen & Prusak, 2001) It refers to networked ties of goodwill, mutual support, shared language, shared norms, social trust, and a sense of mutual obligation that people can derive value from. These resources range from example, access to potential career moves, and access to resources in entrepreneurial start-up processes, to access to cooperative services in developmental countries
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