Social Capital, Collective Morality and HIV/AIDS in Rural South Africa

Abstract

This study recognises the importance of social capital in community health interventions. It presents the results of a qualitative study exploring the role of community-level social capital in creating and facilitating pathways through which HIV/AIDS infection can be prevented and mitigated. Drawing on ethnographic narratives of the participants captured mainly through semi-structured interviews, the study reveals social capital as playing a significant role in addressing a host of social determinants of HIV/AIDS such a poverty, social marginalisation and inequality. Study participants were drawn from three (3) villages of the Umkhanyakhude District of KwaZulu-Natal Province. The importance of social capital can be seen in its ability to promote the development of a common morality and the horizontal exchange of resources. The study has established that at the community l evel, social capital is believed to promote health by fighting social stigma and the provision of social support. This study also emphasised the relevance of localised participation in HIV/AIDS initiatives and its ability to create social capital for HIV/AIDS prevention.