Low Social Capital Research Articles

Does Social Capital Matter for the Development of Scheduled Tribes in Kerala? An Inter-tribal Analysis

The study intends to explore and substantiate the effectiveness of social capital in the development of different tribes in Kerala, specifically examining inter-tribal disparities. Primary data were gathered from the Kasaragod district in Kerala, encompassing 240 sample households representing the prominent tribes of the region, namely Mavilan, Marati and Malavettuvan. An index has been developed to evaluate the comparative level of social capital possessed by each tribe under investigation by incorporating its various dimensions. The results highlight that the overall effectiveness of social capital in the development of scheduled tribes in Kerala is marginal. However, there are statistically significant differences in the achievement of development outcomes between tribes with high social capital and those with low social capital. Tribes with a higher social capital index excel in bonding, bridging and linking dimensions. Hence, it is imperative to formulate tribal development initiatives with due regard to their distinctive social capital endowment.

Social Capital, Waste Generation, and Firm Performance

This study explores how social capital influences the relationship between waste generation and firm performance. Using data from 2973 non-financial firms across 50 countries from 2010 to 2020, we find that the adverse effects of waste generation on firm performance are more pronounced in countries with high social capital. Specifically, the interaction term between social capital and waste generation is significantly negative, suggesting that firms in these countries experience a greater decline in performance due to waste generation. Our results are robust across various estimation strategies, including Fama–MacBeth, pooled OLS, and panel regressions, and hold under different sample structures and proxies for waste generation. These findings underscore the critical role of social capital in moderating the environmental impact on firm performance, highlighting the need for stricter waste management regulations in countries with low social capital.

Community- and individual-level social capital and cognitive function among older adults in China: a multilevel analysis

Objectives This study aimed to examine (a) the association of cognitive function with community- and with individual-level cognitive and structural social capital, and (b) the cross-level interaction effects of social capital on cognitive function among older adults in China. Method Quota sampling was used to collect data from 800 respondents living in 20 communities in Tianjin and Shijiazhuang, China, in 2020. Multilevel analysis was conducted to examine the hypotheses. Results Individual-level structural social capital was significantly associated with better cognitive function. Furthermore, individual-level cognitive social capital was negatively associated with cognitive function among older adults with low community-level structural social capital, whereas the above association was positive among those with high community-level structural social capital. Following the same pattern, the associations between community-level structural social capital and cognitive function varied by individual-level cognitive social capital. Conclusion This research highlights the protective role of individual-level structural social capital in Chinese older adults’ cognitive function. It also delivers in-depth insights into the varying associations between social capital and cognitive function across different communities or individuals. Future research and practices should focus on cultivating social capital at both levels, and pay attention to the cross-level interactions of social capital.

Catalysts of connection. The role of digital information and communication technology in fostering neighbourhood social cohesion: A systematic review of empirical findings

Neighbourhood social cohesion is associated with a range of beneficial outcomes for residents. However, it is commonly hypothesised that neighbourhood relations face potential disruptions from digital information and communication technologies (DICT) as they are assumed to alter traditional community structures previously grounded in physical proximity. We systematically review 52 empirical studies on the relationship between DICT and neighbourhood social cohesion to determine in what ways DICT hinder or promote neighbourhood social cohesion. We found that DICT promote social cohesion by catalysing local social capital, but not for everyone and not in every neighbourhood. We propose the theoretical concept of ‘catalysts of connection’ to explain how technological affordances and online content interact with collective and individual social capital to develop various domains of social cohesion. Based on these results and our theoretical concept, we conclude that DICT exacerbate socio-spatial inequality in cities as neighbourhoods with low social capital are less likely to reap the benefits of the digital age. We provide paths for future investigations on the intersection of urban research and media and communication studies.

Sea turtles stranded ashore: Sociocultural dissonance and identity conflicts in migration intentions of Chinese international student returnees

In the post-COVID-19 era, Chinese international student returnees are facing greater identity conflicts during their reintegration. Understanding their sociocultural and ideological identity negotiation will better accommodate their needs and facilitate their integration into society. This study explored identity conflicts experienced by Chinese student returnees across ecological systems after reentry to China during COVID-19. A qualitative approach was used with 20 returnees. The key findings of this study reveal multi-layered conflicts stemming from the discordance between traditional Eastern values and newly acquired Western perspectives across meso-to-macro systems. In addition, important factors corresponding to returnees’ social capital were identified during the acculturation. Coping mechanisms and migration intentions were observed to vary distinctly among the identified identity clusters. Individuals with a "homestayer" identity, characterized by a deep commitment to integrating with the Chinese community and a higher level of perceived social capital in China, predominantly employed positive coping strategies, such as behavioral adaptation. This group exhibited a strong inclination to remain in China. Conversely, those with a "wayfarer" identity, who experienced deeper immersion in foreign cultures and displayed critical views towards Chinese society with a perceived low social capital in China, tended to adopt negative coping strategies like social withdrawal, correlating with a pronounced intention to migrate. Finally, "navigators", who skillfully balance their native Chinese and foreign cultural identities and effectively manage transnational engagements and diverse cultural norms through their perceived strong social capital in both societies, demonstrated a tendency towards hybrid coping strategies tailored to individual scenarios, reflecting a nuanced, case-by-case approach. This group exhibited a mixed migration intention, indicative of their flexible identity orientation. These findings suggest the need for multi-level support systems and policies that not only facilitate returnee identity continuity but also foster an inclusive and diverse societal framework to effectively retain this valuable population.

Linking personal initiative and family help as well as social support: a case study of learning challenges and solutions for older adults in rural China during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The sudden outbreak of the COVID-19 Pandemic has caused serious damage to the continuous learning of older adults around the world. While the existing literature focused more on older adults' learning in developed countries, few studies explored older adults' learning in developing countries with low social and cultural capital. This study took family-school cooperation in China as the platform and explored learning challenges and solutions through unstructured interviews with 12 older adults. The study found that due to policies of working and studying from home, older adults face obstacles in accessing physical learning institutions and digital learning knowledge, skills, and psychology. I further found that the older adults were not forced to accept the challenge passively, but created a lifelong learning model with Chinese characteristics by building self-learning based on personal initiative, developing sustainable intergenerational learning rooted in Chinese family culture, and participating in online learning in schools and enterprises under the government guidance. This study provided new knowledge for understanding the learning challenges and solutions of older adults in rural China. It is emphasized that policy value and practice enlightenment were highlighted and discussed in conversations with active aging, intergenerational learning, and harmonious societies.

Social Capital and Surgery Access Among Medicare Beneficiaries.

To compare the rates of unplanned procedures for access-sensitive surgical conditions among beneficiaries living in census tracts of varying social capital levels. Access-sensitive surgical conditions are conditions ideally screened for and treated in an elective setting. However, when left untreated, these conditions may result in unplanned (i.e., urgent or emergent) surgery. It is possible that social capital-the resources available to individuals through their membership in a social network-may impact the likelihood of a planned procedure occurring. Medicare beneficiaries who underwent one of three access-sensitive procedures (abdominal aortic aneurysm repair, colectomy for cancer, and ventral hernia repair) between 2016-2020 were stratified by their census tract level of social capital, the exposure variable. Outcomes included rate of unplanned surgery, readmission, 30-day mortality, and complications which were risk-adjusted with a logistic regression model that accounted for patient age, sex, race, comorbidities, and area deprivation. A total of 975,048 beneficiaries were included (mean [SD] patient age, 76 [7.6] years; 443,190 were male [45.45%]). Compared to patients from census tracts in the highest overall social capital decile, those from census tracts with the least social capital were on average more likely to undergo unplanned surgery (40.67% versus 35.28%, OR=1.26 P<0.001). Additionally, beneficiaries in these communities were also more likely to experience postoperative complications (24.99% versus 22.90%, OR=1.12 P<0.001), but there was no significant difference in rates of readmission or mortality. When evaluating only elective procedures, the differences between the lowest and highest social capital decile groups reduced significantly for complications (12.77% versus 12.11%, OR=1.06 P=0.04), the differences in mortality rates collapsed, and differences in readmission rates remained insignificant. These data suggest that Medicare beneficiaries who live in communities with lower social capital are more likely to undergo unplanned surgery for access-sensitive conditions. Efforts to improve social capital in these communities may be one strategy for reducing the rate of unplanned operations.

The diversity we breath: Community diversity and gas leak management

Diversity might reduce the ability of small-scale communities to protect local resources through its adverse impact on collective action and individual attachment. Using geocoded data on more than 1500 Grade-3 gas leaks in 2016 across Boston and Cambridge, MA, we show that when a leak emerges in a narrowly-defined area with higher ethno-racial fractionalization it enjoys lower chances of end-year reparation. After accounting for socio-economic and infrastructural factors, our preferred estimate suggests that moving from the 10th to the 90th percentile of the fractionalization distribution is associated to a 5.7 percentage point decrease in the probability of reparation, compared with an already low average of 3.7%. This result is robust to different definitions of the community surrounding a leak and to the inclusion of competing measures of diversity. Consistent with our framework, social capital appears to be especially lower in communities fragmented across ethno-racial lines. In turn, lower social capital is negatively associated to leak reparation.

Examining trust in the police and justice system among ethnic minority members: The case of Moroccan- and Turkish-Dutch citizens in the Netherlands

While extant studies indicate that ethnic minority citizens report relatively low levels of trust in the police and justice system, it is less clear how that trust can be explained. Thanks to its purposive oversampling of Dutch citizens with Turkish and Moroccan origins and nested structure (individuals clustered within neighbourhoods), the Netherlands Longitudinal Lifecourse Study has enabled us to scrutinise which of the following factors contribute to their trust in the police and justice system: (a) being in a weak socioeconomic position; (b) individual social capital; (c) (perceiving to be) living in underprivileged neighbourhoods characterised by disorder and low social capital; and (d) perceived discrimination. Multilevel structural equation modelling, allowing us to untangle individual perceptions from intersubjective neighbourhood-level conditions, reveals that Moroccan-Dutch citizens report less trust than Turkish-Dutch citizens. We find that perceived neighbourhood disorder and perceived discrimination link to lower trust, while traditional explanations such as socioeconomic position and social capital are far less relevant. We discuss our findings’ implications for ongoing debates on, amongst others, the role of ethnicity and neighbourhood conditions in trust in the police and justice system.

Digital extension and farmers' adoption of climate adaptation technology: An empirical analysis of China

Climate adaptation technology represents an effective strategy in mitigating the impacts of climate change. Digital extension serves as a promising solution to overcome the constraints associated with conventional technology promotion methods. This study uses 610 apple growers survey data of the prominent apple-producing region-Shaanxi Province, to examine the impact of digital extension on farmers' adoption of climate adaptation technology and its underlying mechanism. The results show that digital extension significantly influences on farmers' adoption of climate adaptation technology, and this conclusion remains robust after additional tests. Additionally, we identify two primary mechanisms by which digital extension influences the climate adaptation technology adoption. Firstly, by enhancing farmers' access to financial resources through credit-related mechanisms, digital extension fosters their adoption of climate adaptation technology. Secondly, digital extension elevates awareness of the ecological and economic benefits, thus motivating farmers to embrace climate adaptation technology. Heterogeneity analysis indicates that digital extension has a more pronounced impact on the adoption behavior of climate adaptation technology among farmers characterized by advanced digital skills, low social capital, large-scale operations, non-farm payroll status, or vulnerability to high-disaster scenarios.

Navigating the Financing Constraints: The Role of Social Capital in Developing Countries

This article uses data from 111 developing countries to document the effect of social capital on financing constraints faced by private firms. The results show that firms headquartered in countries with high social capital face lower financing constraints than firms headquartered in countries with low social capital. These findings are robust to a comprehensive inclusion of country-level and firm-level controls. We argue that social capital is instrumental in creating an environment in which managers are less likely to act opportunistically, thereby increasing the trust of capital providers in firms. Consequently, capital providers are more likely to grant credit to firms, thereby reducing the financing constraints. The findings also show that the relationship between social capital and financing constraints is moderated by firm-specific and country-specific characteristics. Firms with weaker fundamentals and firms headquartered in countries with weaker institutions are more likely to benefit from improvement in social capital. JEL Codes: A13, G3

Financial awareness, risk aversion and portfolio choice

ABSTRACT “The financial market participation puzzle remains one of the most explored yet unanswered areas in finance. We extend the debate of portfolio choice by examining stock and derivatives market participation by focusing on two key investor traits: financial awareness and risk aversion. We use an investor survey conducted by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), covering over 15,000 Indian investor responses. We find that risk aversion is associated with a 20% lower probability of market participation, whereas risk-averse individuals having high financial awareness are around 3.3% more likely to participate in financial markets. Furthermore, financial awareness and risk aversion are more significant in areas with higher economic freedom and lower social capital. Our findings suggest that policymakers may consider tailored financial awareness programmes based on differences in risk aversion among the investors as both these characteristics have a combined relationship with financial market participation.

Social capital of families of children with neurodevelopmental disabilities in South India.

To investigate the social capital of families with children with neurodevelopmental disabilities in South India receiving a community-based early intervention (Enabling Inclusion®) program and to explore determinants and associations between social capital and program duration, socio-demographic factors, family empowerment, and caregiver burden. Using purposive sampling in a cross-sectional study design, 217 families (n = 71 received short Enabling Inclusion [<5 months]; n = 146 received long Enabling Inclusion [>9 months]) were recruited and completed the Short Adapted Social Capital Tool (SASCAT: cognitive, structural), measures of family empowerment, and caregiver strain. Descriptive statistics, regression, and correlations were used for analyses. In 52.1% of participants, low cognitive and structural social capital was observed. Higher odds of low structural social capital were observed for mothers with primary versus secondary education (adjusted odds ratio [OR] = 0.35; 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.13-0.90; p = 0.029); and caregivers of children with cerebral palsy versus autism (OR = 4.66; 95% CI 1.02-21.21; p = 0.046). Significant associations were found between structural social capital, the child's age, and support group membership (χ2 = 6.29; 4.70; degrees of freedom [df] = 2; 1; p = 0.04; p = 0.02 respectively), as well as between cognitive social capital and other disability in the family (χ2 = 4.62, df = 1, p = 0.03). While program duration was not found to mediate social capital, mother's education and child's diagnosis emerged as key influential factors, warranting their consideration in interventions supporting families of children with neurodevelopmental disabilities in low- and-middle-income countries and elsewhere.

Resisting sustainable development: an analysis of young people’s online discussions

ABSTRACT Society is currently facing and experiencing a fundamental environmental and social climate-related crisis. Despite this, many groups in society are either opposed to or sceptical about various sustainability reforms, research on the climate crisis and other environmental issues. This article aims to clarify the underlying logic of how and why some young people express resistance, and how habits, values and identity contribute to negative emotions and doubts about sustainable development, climate change and the current environmental crisis. The analysed data originates from an internet forum where young people can discuss political matters. First, through a qualitative inductive content analysis, four tensions were identified that either led to or were manifested as resistance. Second, a deductive content analysis was conducted based on Bourdieu’s forms of capital. The results show that resistance was often manifested as a defence of economic advantage and a fear of losing or experiencing a low cultural or social capital in the process of sustainability. Due to these fears other groups, such as women, immigrants and urban populations, were blamed by those who saw themselves as disadvantaged in a sustainable transformation.

How does digital life influence the health service use among rural residents? Evidence from China.

The Healthy China strategy is an important development objective of the 14th Five-Year Plan and Vision 2035 in China, while health service use in rural China has been a weak link in this strategy. Nowadays, people's health service use will be influenced by digital technology due to the arrival of the Digital Age, and that is the reason why our interest is to discuss the effect of digital life on health service use among rural residents. We use the data from the China Family Panel Studies (CFPS) 2020 to examine the effect of digital life on health service use among rural residents, and we use Instrumental Variables method to control the endogenous problem and use KHB model to discuss the mechanism of this effect. It was found that digital life has increased the health service use among rural residents significantly, and this result has been verified by robust test and Instrumental Variables method. Besides, digital life can increase health service use through the information channel effect and the health literacy effect indirectly. Moreover, digital life has a more significant impact on the residents with low social capital, low physical capital and low social trust, which represents the inclusivity of digital life. The results of our paper will be helpful to examine the effect of the digital policy on promoting the health service use in rural China, and our findings will provide evidence of how to use digital life to enhance health service use among rural residents. Based on this, the government should take measures to eliminate the digital divide between urban and rural areas by promoting the level of digital life among rural residents, paying more attention to the digital literacy development among them, and forging ahead toward the great goal of the Healthy China under the Digital Age.

“People are now working together for a common good”: The effect on social capital of participatory design for community-level sanitation infrastructure in urban informal settlements

Communities with higher levels of social capital perform better than communities with lower social capital in community-level water and sanitation interventions and have better health outcomes. Although research recommends bolstering social capital to improve intervention outcomes, few studies provide empirical evidence on the effect of intervention activities on social capital. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of participatory design and community engagement activities on social capital among urban informal settlements in Suva, Fiji and Makassar, Indonesia enrolled in the Revitalizing Informal Settlements and their Environments trial using the Short Adapted Social Capital Assessment Tool. We performed confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) to test tool performance and built structural equation models to assess intervention effect on CFA-informed, sub-scale scores for cognitive and structural social capital. Qualitative in-depth interviews in Fiji and Indonesia and focus group discussions in Fiji provided nuanced understanding of intervention effects on social capital from residents’ perspectives. Results confirmed the hypothesized two-factor solution but revealed differences by country and by gender in Indonesia. The intervention appeared positively related to cognitive social capital among men and women in Indonesia and negatively related to cognitive and structural social capital among men and women in Fiji. While effect sizes were small and cluster-adjustment for a small number of settlements yielded non-significant effects, trends were consistent across models and bivariate analyses and were corroborated by qualitative findings. Several contextual factors may explain these results, including timing and duration of intervention activities and influence of COVID-19. Qualitative data suggested that the relationship between participatory design and social capital may be bidirectional, helping to explain why certain settlements appeared to be better equipped to benefit from intervention activities. Practitioners and program designers should carefully consider the social pre-conditions of communities in which they intend to work to optimize program outcomes and avoid unintended consequences.

Social Capital and Social Adaptation in Surakarta Society with Low Socioeconomic Status in the Covid-19 Era

This study aims to illustrate the relationship between social capital and social adaptation in Surakarta society with low socioeconomic status in the Covid-19 era. This research is descriptive type, using qualitative research methods, which are conducted descriptively analytically, to describe the relationship between the concept of social capital and social adaptation. Informants were selected using purposive sampling, taken by 32 informants, which was determined based on the diversity of social capital in people who were in the category of low socioeconomic status. Data analysis is conducted interactively through data collection, data reduction, data presentation and conclusions. Primary data were collected representing variations in employment, education, marital status, and home ownership. Data was collected online using Google Forms instruments. To validate the correctness of the data on the relationship between the concept of social capital and social adaptation. Triangulation of sources was carried out, by presenting informants in Focus Group Discussion activities within 3 days. The collected data was processed using SPSS version 26 and displayed as a cross table. The results showed the diversity of findings, the presence of informants with high social capital, followed by social adaptation. Those with low social capital, followed by low social adaptation. However, an interesting finding found that those with high social capital but low social adaptation categories. In addition, found that even if informants had categorized low social capital, they were still able to survive with the support of high social adaptation.

노인의 사회참여 동기가 우울에 미치는 영향

The purpose of this study is to examine and verify whether social capital modulates the relationship between motivation for social participation and depression in the elderly. To this end, data were collected through a questionnaire survey targeting elderly people aged 65 or older in the Jeonbuk area, and responses were collected from 414 people. Among them, the response data from 395 people were analyzed by a controlled regression equation using the SPSS 25.0 statistical program, and a simple slope test was performed. . The analysis results are as follows. First, as the relationship-oriented motivation among the elderly's social participation motivation increased, the elderly's depression decreased. Second, as social capital increased, depression in the elderly decreased. Third, as a result of verifying the moderating effect of social capital in the relationship where the elderly's social participation motivation (self-oriented motivation, relationship-oriented motivation, social-oriented motivation) affects depression in the elderly, the group with high social capital is the group with low social capital. In comparison, social participation motives (self-oriented motives, relationship-oriented motives) had a greater influence on depression in the elderly. Based on this, it was confirmed that social capital modulates the effect of the elderly's social participation motivation (self-oriented motivation, relationship-oriented motivation) on depression in the elderly. Based on these results, practical and policy suggestions were made on ways to provide social participation opportunities for the improvement of depression in the elderly, ways to form a social support network, and social participation activities for the elderly that can be applied at the community level.

The More, the Better? Social Capital Profiles and Adolescent Internalizing Symptoms: A Latent Profile Analysis.

Past research suggests that offline and online social capital are empirically linked to adolescent psychological adjustment. However, little is known regarding the implications of distinctive combinations of social capital for adolescent internalizing symptoms. The present study aimed to examine adolescent social capital patterns and their associations with internalizing symptoms by using latent profile analysis. A cross-sectional web-based survey was conducted among 1595 Chinese adolescents (mean age = 14.30years, 50.7% male). All adolescents completed self-report questionnaires on their perceived offline and online social capital, depressive symptoms and anxiety symptoms. Latent profile analysis revealed four profiles of social capital: (1) Low Social Capital, (2) Moderate Social Capital, (3) High Social Capital, and (4) Only High Offline Social Capital. Further, analysis of covariance demonstrated that the Only High Offline Social Capital profile had significantly fewer internalizing symptoms than other three profiles. No statistical differences of internalizing symptoms were found between the other three profiles, except that the Moderate Social Capital profile showed fewer anxiety symptoms than the Low Social Capital profile. These findings suggest that more social capital does not equal to better mental health status. The social capital profiles and their associations with adolescent internalizing symptoms may provide practitioners with meaningful implications regarding the role of offline and online social capital in adolescent psychological adjustment.

The Negede Woyto Minority Group in a Historical Perspective

Abstract Ethiopia is one of the oldest countries, inhabited by different ethnic and cultural groups. One of the minority groups in the nation, the Negede Woyto of the Lake Tana Catchment Area, has been marginalised in terms of various aspects. Besides reconstructing the history of this minority group, this article strives to investigate the changes and continuities in the social, economic, and political lives of the minority group from a historical perspective. To this end, both primary and secondary sources were collected and used. Based on the analysis, the study found that communal life, low social capital, marginalisation, conflict of values, a lack of institutions that protect minorities, low political participation, and a lack of secure means of survival are identified as the main causes for the majority of the Negede Woyto Community to lead a life as subhuman with (in) dignity and chronic poverty.