Capital Community Research Articles

Social Capital of Farmers in the Rural Communities of Vojvodina

Summary The development of rural areas is a complex social, economic, political and cultural issue of immense importance to the development of society as a whole. The vitality of rural communities, which represent a specific socio-spatial phenomenon, affects the development of global society and is inextricably linked to the development and issues of urban areas of each society. Both in theory and development practice, rural development as a complex and enduring process has long been unjustifiably reduced to the economic-agrarian matrix, often reflected in the modernization of agriculture and the centralized and sectoral management of and influence on rural development. The primary focus of this paper is on the social capital of rural communities, i.e. social relations and connections within local rural communities which, alongside other important development factors, are one of the prerequisites to maintaining their vitality. The paper presents the results of a survey on social capital conducted on 281 farms in the region of Vojvodina (Serbia), indicating the characteristics of the social capital on the farms considered and the farmers’ attitudes towards the development and life of their local communities. The social capital of the surveyed farmers was found to be only relatively good, suggesting that the overall social capital in Serbia is underdeveloped because all the farms considered are located in Vojvodina, i.e. the most developed agricultural area in Serbia characterized by rural settlements with the most favorable infrastructural, demographic and economic conditions.

Urban green space use during a time of stress: A case study during the COVID-19 pandemic in Brisbane, Australia.

Spending time in nature is one potential way to cope with the negative physical and psychological health impacts from major stressful life events. In 2020, a large fraction of the global population was impacted by restrictions to contain the spread of the COVID‐19 outbreak, a period characterised by marked health risks and behavioural changes. Here we explore whether people responded to this stressor by spending more time in nature and investigate the reasons for any changes.We surveyed 1,002 people in Brisbane, Australia in 2020, to measure the change in use of green space during the restrictions period and benefits people associated with visiting them.About 36% of participants increased their urban green space use, but 26% reduced it, indicating a great deal of flux. Furthermore, 45% of the previous non‐users of urban green space began using it for the first time during the restrictions period. Older people were less likely to increase their green space use and those with a backyard were more likely to increase their use of green spaces.Participants' change in use occurred regardless of the amount of green space available in close proximity to their households. In addition, we did not find a relationship between nature‐relatedness and change in use.People's reasons for green space use shifted during the pandemic‐related restrictions period, with many emphasising improvement of personal well‐being rather than consolidating community capital. Most participants indicated an increase in the importance of the psychological and physical benefits obtained from urban green spaces.We conclude that increased urban green space use during moments of stress such as the COVID‐19 pandemic has the potential to ameliorate some of the negative effects of the stressor, but that the capacity and desire to spend more time in green space varies markedly across society. Sufficient urban green space provision for all sections of society will maximise the opportunity to employ a nature‐based coping mechanism during times of personal or community stress.

New normals, from talk to gesture

ABSTRACT Despite all the news coverage and online chatter about the repercussions of COVID-19, the pandemic has underscored the material limitations of public discourse to redress a health crisis of such magnitude. No amount of talk or deliberation will cure a virus of this scale. If part of the work of cultural studies is to identify the ways a given conjuncture shapes and delimits the felt experience of everyday life, then one charge of our work now is to examine the emergence of those ‘new normals’ that the novel coronavirus has spawned. One of these emergent new configurations of the everyday has been the spread of concerned gestures as a counterpoint to the usual talk talk talk of communicative capitalism. Gestures of concern, from chalking sidewalks to applauding essential workers, build the affective commonwealths that cultivate solidarity in times of protracted precarity. Exceeding Raymond Williams’s notion of ‘structures of feeling,’ affective commonwealths are a resource built from ordinary people whose gestural rituals enact the sorts of worlds that talk alone just can’t bring about. This essay makes a case for the importance of such gestures and suggests they deserve further attention in and beyond the context of the pandemic.

The Canadian experience from the perspective of Brazilian immigrant entrepreneurship in Toronto

Objective: The study aims at analyzing the socio-demographic profile of Brazilian immigrant entrepreneurship in Toronto, its entrepreneurial behavioral traits, in addition to their business profiles. Methodology/approach: This research is multi-method, with qualitative predominance, being exploratory-descriptive. For data-collection it was conducted a survey and further deepening with face-to-face interviews and field observations. Main results: The majority declared themselves to be from the Brazilian Southeast, white, 35 to 49 years old, married, with children, high academic and professional background. The influence of the state of social malaise in Brazil and the official Canadian discourse, seem to act as factors of "expulsion-attraction" to migration. The job condition of unemployment upon immigrants’ arrival can “push” them into necessity-driven entrepreneurship, although there are also ventures that have identified opportunities. Most of the businesses are small and operate in the service sector, concentrated on the West End of Toronto. In many businesses, there was a strong search for identification with the ethnic community itself, which suggests the formation of 'enclave economy', but in some cases, the main market for local consumers was targeted. Theoretical/methodological contributions: The article highlights the importance of conducting a multi-method research to understand possible entrepreneurial configurations by Brazilian immigrants. Relevance / originality: the article has academic relevance given the scarce work on the theme of Brazilian immigrant entrepreneurship overseas. Truly little is known about this phenomenon in Canada. Social and management contributions: The entrepreneurial trajectories described minimize risks for future immigrants; in addition, the discussion about the social capital of the ethnic community allows comparisons with the business of Brazilians in other countries.

Reducing solid waste through waste banks: an empirical study in Kepulauan Riau, Indonesia

To overcome the solid waste problem, many city governments initiate and facilitate waste banks. Various studies have sought citizen participation in waste banks, but there is little attention to understanding how the coexistence of social capital can encourage waste banks’ practice. This study, therefore, aims at examining the social capital of the urban communities in the business process of waste banks. We looked in-depth at the practice of six waste banks in Tanjungpinang City, Kepulauan Riau, Indonesia. A series of interviews were carried out on the stakeholders of waste banks, such as management, customers, citizens, and households. We suggest that a number of social capitals shape the business process of waste banks, including trust, norms, social networks, and gotong royong. This research has a novel for the study of community-based waste management by considering the urban community’s social capital. Our study also has a worthy recommendation to the local government in managing waste management by corroborating social capital.

Social Capital: Higher Resilience in Slums in the Lagos Metropolis

Different slums exhibit different levels of resilience against the threat of eviction. However, little is known about the role of the social capital of the slum community in this context. This study investigates the factors contributing to slum resilience in the Lagos Metropolis, Nigeria, through a social capital lens. This study first investigates land allocation in slums, then the available social capital, and subsequently how this capital influences resilience to the threat of eviction in slums. Data were collected in two slum communities, in Lagos, through in-depth interviews and focus groups discussion. This study shows that land allocation is done by the traditional heads, contrarily to the mandate of the Nigeria Land Use Act of 1978. Furthermore, there is a form of structural social capital through the presence of government registered community development associations in the slums; however, their activities, decision-making process and the perception of the residents’ towards their respective associations, differs. This led to differences in trust, social cohesion and bonding ties among residents of the slum, thereby influencing resilience to the threat of eviction in slums. Since community group associations, through the appointed executives, drive the efficient utilization of social capital in slums, this study therefore recommends their restructuring in order to support a sustainable solution to the threat of eviction in slums in Lagos.

‘Staying in the Nationalist Bubble’

‘Staying in the Nationalist Bubble’

Crims and crooks: automatization, communicative capitalism, fandom, and promotion for Wentworth

ABSTRACT This essay examines domestic and international marketing campaigns for the Australian prison drama, Wentworth (Foxtel, 2013–Present), as an intervention into the relationship between (digital) marketing strategies and fan engagement with televisual ideologies. We comment on how three manifestations of marketing (via two campaigns) connect back to automatization, capitalism, incarceration, and media using both technological automation and fan labor—and argue that the campaigns’ use of automation and participatory culture exploited fan communication and fetishized incarceration for capitalistic gain. Extending previous scholarship around participatory culture’s reliance on audience labor and applying a critical cultural studies lens, we elucidate how the show utilized cross-cultural marketing approaches that stood at ideological odds with the show’s content. The first campaign, Australia’s Foxtel promotion of Season Five, employed full automatization to alter the fan viewing experience and maximize profits. The second campaign by Spain’s Calle 13 promoted the series’ Spanish debut. The backdrop for Calle 13’s campaign was drastically different, including only partial automation. It reduced fan interaction and used participatory culture to collect audience information. Both campaigns commercialized fan culture and utilized varying levels of automation to more firmly position prison as an entertainment landscape, simultaneously de-humanizing the experiences of women inmates offscreen.

How Does Online Brand Community Climate Influence Community Identification? The Mediation of Social Capital

Although online communities with a supportive climate encourage members to participate and exchange their information openly and freely, participants may perceive the community to be unsafe without proper control. Do controlling climates also contribute to the accumulation of social capital in online brand communities (OBCs)? The purpose of our study was to investigate how controlling and supportive climates jointly influence community identification, and to examine the mediating effects of social capital and the moderating effects of community age. A conceptual framework was proposed and tested with data collected from an online survey of 481 online brand community members. We found that both controlling and supportive climates had positive effects on social capital (trust and norms of reciprocity), which exerted a partial mediation between community climate and community identification in the OBCs examined. Developing a community climate was particularly effective in generating trust in older communities. This research contributes to the community literature and has important implications for community climate management. We identified the boundary conditions of the community climate-trust association.

Social capital analysis and its relations with the household food security of the coastal community

Food security is still a problem in the coastal community. One of the resources or capital that can be used to develop food security is social capital. This study aims to (1) analyze the social capital of the coastal community, (2) analyze the level of household food security of the coastal community, and (3) analyze the relationship between social capital and the level of household food security of coastal communities. This research was conducted in Barrang Lompo Sub-District, Sangkarrang District, Makassar City, in 2018 using the survey method. The unit of analysis is a fishing household with a total sample of 40 households. Data analysis was performed using descriptive statistics and chi-square tests. The results showed that the elements of social capital, especially trust, networking, and reciprocity of the fisherman community, are in the medium and high level. There are 53.00% of fisherman households that have a high level of social capital. Trust, networking, and reciprocity in the fisherman community help them to maintain the sustainability of food availability at the household level, especially during famine season. Statistically, social capital is related to the level of food security of fishermen households (χ 2 = 8.02; C = 0.41).

Comprehensive research on corporate disclosure theory

Incorporating the dynamics of capital markets into the driving force, starting from comparable ESG (environmental, social and governance) information, will contribute to the circulation of the ecosystem that connects business and a sustainable society. Professor Nobuhito Ochi, Department of Policy Studies, Shobi University, Japan, is deepening research toward the realization of an ESG ecosystem, with a basic perspective of improving market discipline for corporate activities related to ESG and leveraging the improvement of comparability of non-financial information. Ochi's work comprehensively examines the externalities of social common capital held by modern society, and uses the thinking framework of incentive analysis as a methodological foundation, and aims to develop interdisciplinary disclosure theory to improve inefficiency caused by asymmetry of information. Measures that would contribute to the realization of social value under a framework that utilizes disclosure discipline, in order to draw out incentives for coping with the cause for externality control related to natural capital, social capital (culture and community) and institutional capital (finance and audit).<br/> Ochi is conducting research that involves looking at a broad range of corporate activities surrounding disclosure theory, ESG and AI, including lead companies to an ideal ESG information disclosure process through the utilization of AI. This work includes looking at how companies can buffer communities from the negative aspects of a corporation's activities and exploring the disclosure of information including social, natural and institutional capital. Ochi has presented a theory of corporate disclosure and a theory of assurance of non-financial information that allows for better control of costs and benefits that are social common capital rather than financial capital. The theory operates under a framework that uses the discipline of disclosure and contributes to the realization of social value and, ultimately, Ochi is seeking to help build a financial and economical society that contributes to societal wellbeing.

Understanding the Role of Online Media Platforms in Airport Capital Projects and Community Outreach

Community outreach and engagement efforts are critical to an airport’s role as an ever-evolving transportation infrastructure and regional economic driver. As online social media platforms continue to grow in both popularity and influence, a new engagement channel between airports and the public is emerging. However, the motivations behind and effectiveness of these social media channels remain unclear. In this work, we address this knowledge gap by better understanding the advantages, impact, and best practices of this newly emerging engagement channel available to airports. Focusing specifically on airport YouTube channels, we first document quantitative viewership metrics, and examine common content characteristics within airport YouTube videos. We then conduct interviews and site visits with relevant airport stakeholders to identify the motivations and workflow behind these videos. Finally, we facilitate sample focus groups designed to survey public perceptions of the effectiveness and value of these videos. From our four project phases, to maximize content effectiveness and community engagement potential, we synthesize the following framework of action items, recommendations, and best practices: (C) Consistency and community; (O) Organizational structure; (M) Momentum; (B) Branding and buy-in; (A) Activity; (T) Two-way engagement; (E) Enthusiasm; and (D) Depth, or as a convenient initialism, our COMBATED framework.

Identifying a community capital investment portfolio to sustain a tourism workforce

Members of the tourism workforce are a crucial resource, whose quality and quantity determine the success of tourism businesses and destinations. Yet, they are frequently subjected to social, psychological, and economic stressors which can result in isolation from destination communities or limited interest in participation in the tourism workforce. Both of these outcomes threaten the sustainability of tourism businesses and destinations, but more importantly create a working environment that can be unjust or unsafe for tourism workforce members. This study relies upon the community capitals framework to identify the resources that currently support the tourism workforce in an island community whose economic and social structure is heavily reliant upon tourism. Analysis of data from in-depth interviews and focus groups with thirty-seven tourism stakeholders reveals the social, cultural, human, and natural capital assets used to support a tourism workforce. An “investment portfolio” for these capitals offers development strategies that can be implemented to help sustain the tourism workforce.

The role of public libraries in the development of social capital in local communities – a theoretical study

PurposeSocial capital, understood as intangible community values available through a network of connections, is a factor in the development of societies and improving quality of life. It helps to remove economic inequalities and prevent poverty and social exclusion, stimulate social and regional development, civic attitudes and social engagement and build a civic society as well as local and regional identity. Many of these tasks may be implemented by libraries, which, apart from providing access to information, may also offer a number of services associated with social needs. The purpose of this paper is to present the roles and functions that libraries may serve in local communities in terms of assistance, integration and development based on classical social capital theories.Design/methodology/approachThe paper reviews the classical concepts of social capital in the context of libraries. It analyses the findings of Pierre-Félix Bourdieu, James Coleman, Francis Fukuyama, Robert Putnam, Nan Lin, Ronald Stuart Burt, Wayne Baker and Alejandro Portes. Based on their respective concepts, the paper analyses the role of the contemporary library in the social life of local communities. In particular, it focuses on the possible new functions that public libraries may serve.FindingsA critical review of the concept of social capital revealed certain dependencies between libraries and their neighbourhoods. With new services that respond to the actual social needs, libraries may serve as a keystone, namely they may integrate, animate and engage local communities. This, however, requires a certain approach to be adopted by the personnel and governing authorities as well as infrastructure and tangible resources.Originality/valueThe social engagement of libraries is usually described from the practical perspective (reports on the services provided) or in the context of research on the impact of respective projects on specific groups of users (research reports). A broader approach, based on original social theories, is rarely encountered. The paper draws on classical concepts of social capital and is a contribution to the discussion on possible uses of those concepts based on an analysis of the role of libraries in social life and in strengthening the social capital of local communities.

ТЕОРИЯ П. ВИРНО: КОММУНИКАЦИЯ, НОВАЯ ПУБЛИЧНОСТЬ, ДЕМОКРАТИЯ

The article is about the key moments of the theory of post-operaist philosopher Paolo Virno in connection with the concepts of nonmaterial economy and general intellect. The theory of post-operaism is based on the judgment that, from the one hand, communication becomes the leading mean of production and increment of capital in the frame of Post-Fordist capitalism; from the other hand, communication as the mode of production of «common» can be the foundation for the labor autonomy from capital and emergence the new types of democracy. The borders between labor (poesis), political activity (praxis) and intellect (life of Mind) blur in the frame nonmaterial economy functioning. As a result, we have deal with the situation of politization of labor and highlighting the phenomenon of virtuosity as a key competence in the new type of capitalism. Connection between labor and politics moves the labor activity in to category of public action that build new understanding of publicity based on the mastery of language and communication. Marх’s sustained division of labor on productive and unproductive, where the last isn’t able to create surplus value, gets the new conceptualization in the frame of post-operaist theory. Contemporary communicative capitalism has shown that the intellectual worker-virtuoso can make surplus value in the frame of cultural industry development, the «life» labor serves the capital in such situation. But, at the same time, the virtuoso linguistic activity as the basis of nonmaterial economy can become the foundation for the new types of democracy, which differ from the project of neoliberal democracy, where labor gets the characteristics of political action and receives the autonomy from capital. The concept of labor as virtuoso political action based on the idea of interactive and communicative foundation of politics which can to create the new space of publicity using the communicative technologies. These technologies empower the realization of participatory democratic processes for the citizens in the frame of political life and provide type of political interaction which sets out the continuity of the process of production of common knowledge, ideas, communications, relationships and finance as the basis for the new type of democracy. All of that promote the manifestation of communist (production of «common») tendencies in cooperative functioning of knowledge, communication and capital.

Dimensions of social and political capital in interventions to improve household well-being: Implications for coffee-growing areas in southern Colombia.

This paper studies the influence of community capitals on well-being through a Community Capital Index (CCI) within coffee-growing families in southern Colombia. Our results show different farm typologies, with different levels of capital endowment translated into well-being that, in our case, were represented in the CCI. Specifically, social and political capitals positively affect coffee-growing families’ decisions in terms of life strategies. The results of this study increase our understanding of welfare enhancement and its relationship with capital endowment according to the type of coffee producer, having implications for the planning of more effective programs towards the improvement of quality of life.

Understanding Sporting Social Media Brand Communities, Place and Social Capital: A Netnography of Football Fans

The emergence of social media and digital channels have expanded communication practices and also created new, virtual spaces where sports fans can interact and communicate directly with each other and with clubs. This article examines the potential for social media brand communities to develop a sense of both community and place amongst sports fans. It explores their influence in placemaking initiatives through the bonding and bridging social capital of a football club’s supporters. A netnographic study of a football club’s supporter networks (five channels) and their interactions with social media brand communities was performed. Data gathered from online sources was underpinned by interviews with 25 members of the community. Findings were analysed via NVivo using bridging and bonding social capital as a theoretical lens. The paper makes two primary contributions to knowledge. It enhances our understanding of the impact of SMBCs and their use in a sporting context—an area that has become increasingly significant during the COVID-19 pandemic enforced lockdowns that have kept fans out of venues. It also contributes to our understanding of the influence of placemaking strategies upon the social capital of supporter communities.

The impact of website quality on customer loyalty with the intermediate role of social capital: A case study of the Bamilo website

The main objective of this study is to investigate the impact of Bamillo website quality on customer loyalty through the mediating role of social capital. This research is applied in terms of purpose and it is a field study in terms of data collection. The population of the study included all users of the Bamilo website who had at least one purchase order from this site. Accordingly, 384 people were selected through available sampling. The instrument used in the research was the standard questionnaire of China et al. (2016), which confirmed the validity and reliability of the questionnaire. Structural equation modeling with the partial least squares method was used to analyze the data. The results showed that the quality of information on-site information quality on cognitive capital was rejected and its impact on structural capital was confirmed. The quality of the site system on cognitive capital is also rejected and its impact on structural capital is confirmed. On the other hand, the quality of site services has an impact on cognitive capital and structural capital. Also, cognitive capital and communication capital affect communication capital, and cognitive capital and communication capital affect customer loyalty. However, the impact of the capitalist mediation mediated the relationship between information quality and system quality with customer loyalty. Cognitive capital also mediates the relationship between service quality and customer loyalty, and structural capital mediates the relationship between information quality and customer loyalty. On the other hand, the mediating role of structural capital in the relationship between system quality and customer loyalty was confirmed and structural capital mediated the relationship between service quality and customer loyalty.

Staying connected: Effects of online platforms on transnational family relations and social capital

ABSTRACT By recruiting participants from the social-networking website InterNations, this qualitative interview-based research explores how Nikkei Brazilians maintain intimate family relations and cultivate interpersonal connections within their local communities via Information and Communication Technology (ICT). This research investigates the role of ICT and social media in maintaining transnational family ties and social capital in local communities for Nikkei Brazilian migrants in Japan. For Nikkei Brazilians who struggle with finding their own niche upon their migration to Japan, online communication with family and friends in Brazil helps provide emotional support that assists with acclimation to Japanese society. ICT and social media also serve as avenues for recent migrants to meet people based on similar interests and backgrounds. Regardless of ample online resources, some interviewees report that work-oriented lifestyles, cultural differences and language barriers make it harder to become acquainted with local Japanese communities. Interviewees’ backgrounds, such as their occupations, intended lengths of stay, and areas of residency in Japan, are examined to identify factors facilitating the expansion of connections with local communities in Japan while simultaneously sustaining healthy family relationships transnationally. Additionally, this research engages a previously unstudied group of expatriate workers, who have stable careers and have lived in Japan for more than a decade. Their particular experiences and perspectives provide new ways of approaching and framing Nikkei Brazilian migrant studies.

Interview with Martin Jay

Interview with Martin Jay