“Hunkering Down or Hunkering Away?” The Effect of Community Ethnic Diversity on Residents' Social Networks

Abstract

We identify two issues with the current literature suggesting that community ethnic diversity undermines social capital: (1) studies predominantly use attitudinal indicators of social capital; and (2) these attitudinal indicators are neighbourhood specific. We suggest the “size” of, and “frequency of interaction” within, individuals' social networks form more valid indicators of social capital. Thus it remains unknown: (1) whether diversity undermines individuals' social connectivity or only attitudes towards neighbours; or (2) whether diversity undermines individuals' total levels of social connectivity or only neighbourhood connectivity. We demonstrate that diversity negatively predicts both local trust and local social connectivity. However, diversity does not negatively predict individuals' total levels of connectivity. From a social connectivity perspective, diversity may undermine local social capital yet exert little effect on individuals' total levels of social capital. Instead, individuals in diverse communities possess equally sized (and active) but less neighbourhood-centric networks. However, this appears dependent on the ability to maintain dispersed social networks: less mobile individuals (e.g. the elderly) report both lower local and lower total social capital in diverse communities.