Neighborhood Social Capital Research Articles

Latino parents and teachers: key players building neighborhood social capital

This narrative study examines how Latino parents and teachers in the Boyle Heights/East Los Angeles community create and appropriate social capital to increase student achievement. Specifically, the study explores how parents and teachers participate in two community organizations to extend resources that have the potential to positively impact student success and promote social justice. This study further considers the notion of a strengths perspective to reveal the often-overlooked proactive nature of the Latino community and its impact on educational achievement. Through interviews, observations, and text analysis, a story emerges that demonstrates a collective narrative about beliefs, attitudes, and the motivation behind support efforts. Four central themes (Beyond Aspirational Support: A Focus on Academics, Taking Action: A Proactive Approach, Community: An Undeniable Influence, and Parallel Play) highlight the ways parents and teachers are actively engaged in behaviors that lead to student support networks.

Social Capital and Self-rated Health Amongst Older People in Western Finland and Northern Sweden: A Multi-level Analysis

Social capital can be conceptualised as an individual resource residing in relationships between individuals or as a collective resource produced through interactions in neighbourhoods, communities or societies. Previous studies suggest that social capital is, in general, good for health. However, there is a shortage of studies analysing the association between individual and collective social capital in relation to health amongst older people. The purpose of this study was to assess the relationship between municipal- and individual-level social capital and self-rated health amongst older people in Western Finland and Northern Sweden. Data were retrieved from a cross-sectional postal questionnaire survey conducted in 2010. The study included, in total, 6,838 people aged 65, 70, 75 and 80 years living in the two Bothnia regions, Västerbotten, Sweden and Pohjanmaa, Finland. The association between social capital and self-rated health was tested through multi-level logistic regression analyses with ecometric tests. Social capital was measured by two survey items: interpersonal trust and social participation. Individual-level social capital including social participation and trust was significantly associated with self-rated health. A negative association was found between municipal-level trust and health. However, almost all variation in self-rated health resided on the individual level. We conclude that contextual-level social capital on a municipal level is less important for understanding the influence of social capital on health in the Bothnia region of Finland and Sweden. On the other hand, our study shows that individual-level social participation and trust have a positive and significant association with self-rated health. We suggest that other ways of defining social capital at the collective level, such as the inclusion of neighbourhood social capital, could be one direction for future research.

Neighborhood Social Capital, Neighborhood Attachment, and Dental Care Use for Los Angeles Family and Neighborhood Survey Adults

We tested the hypothesis that neighborhood-level social capital and individual-level neighborhood attachment are positively associated with adult dental care use. We analyzed data from the 2000-2001 Los Angeles Family and Neighborhood Survey that were linked to US Census Bureau data from 2000 (n = 1800 adults aged 18-64 years across 65 neighborhoods). We used 2-level hierarchical logistic regression models to estimate the odds of dental use associated with each of 4 forms of social capital and neighborhood attachment. After adjusting for confounders, the odds of dental use were significantly associated with only 1 form of social capital: social support (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 0.85; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.72, 0.99). Individual-level neighborhood attachment was positively associated with dental care use (AOR = 1.05; 95% CI = 1.01, 1.10). Contrary to our hypothesis, adults in neighborhoods with higher levels of social capital, particularly social support, were significantly less likely to use dental care. Future research should identify the oral health-related attitudes, beliefs, norms, and practices in neighborhoods and other behavioral and cultural factors that moderate and mediate the relationship between social capital and dental care use.

Does neighbourhood social capital aid in levelling the social gradient in the health and well-being of children and adolescents? A literature review

BackgroundAlthough most countries in the European Union are richer and healthier than ever, health inequalities remain an important public health challenge. Health-related problems and premature death have disproportionately been reported in disadvantaged neighbourhoods. Neighbourhood social capital is believed to influence the association between neighbourhood deprivation and health in children and adolescents, making it a potentially interesting concept for policymakers.MethodsThis study aims to review the role of social capital in health inequalities and the social gradient in health and well-being of children and adolescents. A systematic review of published quantitative literature was conducted, focussing on (1) the mediating role of neighbourhood social capital in the relationship between socio-economic status (SES) and health-related outcomes in children and adolescents and (2) the interaction between neighbourhood social capital and socio-economic characteristics in relation to health-related outcomes in children and adolescents. Three electronic databases were searched. Studies executed between 1 January 1990 and 1 September 2011 in Western countries (USA, New Zealand, Australia and Europe) that included a health-related outcome in children or adolescents and a variable that measured neighbourhood social capital were included.ResultsEight studies met the inclusion criteria for the review. The findings are mixed. Only two of five studies confirmed that neighbourhood social capital mediates the association between neighbourhood deprivation and health and well-being in adolescents. Furthermore, two studies found a significant interaction between neighbourhood socio-economic factors and neighbourhood social capital, which indicates that neighbourhood social capital is especially beneficial for children who reside in deprived neighbourhoods. However, two other studies did not find a significant interaction between SES and neighbourhood social capital. Due to the broad range of studied health-related outcomes, the different operationalisations of neighbourhood social capital and the conceptual overlap between measures of SES and social capital in some studies, the factors that explain these differences in findings remain unclear.ConclusionsAlthough the findings of this study should be interpreted with caution, the results suggest that neighbourhood social capital might play a role in the health gradient among children and adolescents. However, only two of the included studies were conducted in Europe. Furthermore, some studies focussed on specific populations and minority groups. To formulate relevant European policy recommendations, further European-focussed research on this issue is needed.

The association of neighbourhood and individual social capital with consistent self-rated health: a longitudinal study in Brazilian pregnant and postpartum women

BackgroundSocial conditions, social relationships and neighbourhood environment, the components of social capital, are important determinants of health. The objective of this study was to investigate the association of neighbourhood and individual social capital with consistent self-rated health in women between the first trimester of pregnancy and six months postpartum.MethodsA multilevel cohort study in 34 neighbourhoods was performed on 685 Brazilian women recruited at antenatal units in two cities in the State of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Self-rated health (SRH) was assessed in the 1st trimester of pregnancy (baseline) and six months after childbirth (follow-up). The participants were divided into two groups: 1. Good SRH – good SRH at baseline and follow-up, and, 2. Poor SRH – poor SRH at baseline and follow-up. Exploratory variables collected at baseline included neighbourhood social capital (neighbourhood-level variable), individual social capital (social support and social networks), demographic and socioeconomic characteristics, health-related behaviours and self-reported diseases. A hierarchical binomial multilevel analysis was performed to test the association between neighbourhood and individual social capital and SRH, adjusted for covariates.ResultsThe Good SRH group reported higher scores of social support and social networks than the Poor SRH group. Although low neighbourhood social capital was associated with poor SRH in crude analysis, the association was not significant when individual socio-demographic variables were included in the model. In the final model, women reporting poor SRH both at baseline and follow-up had lower levels of social support (positive social interaction) [OR 0.82 (95% CI: 0.73-0.90)] and a lower likelihood of friendship social networks [OR 0.61 (95% CI: 0.37-0.99)] than the Good SRH group. The characteristics that remained associated with poor SRH were low level of schooling, Black and Brown ethnicity, more children, urinary infection and water plumbing outside the house.ConclusionsLow individual social capital during pregnancy, considered here as social support and social network, was independently associated with poor SRH in women whereas neighbourhood social capital did not affect women’s SRH during pregnancy and the months thereafter. From pregnancy and up to six months postpartum, the effect of individual social capital explained better the consistency of SRH over time than neighbourhood social capital.

Social capital in relation to alcohol consumption, smoking, and illicit drug use among adolescents: a cross-sectional study in Sweden

BackgroundSocial capital has lately received much attention in public health research. However, few studies have examined the influence of social capital on alcohol consumption, smoking and drug use which have strong influence on public health. The present cross-sectional study investigated whether two measures of social capital were related to substance use in a large population of Swedish adolescents.MethodsA total of 7757 13–18 year old students (participation rate: 78.2%) anonymously completed the Survey of Adolescent Life in Vestmanland 2008 which included questions on sociodemographic background, neighbourhood social capital, general social trust, alcohol consumption, smoking, and illicit drug use.ResultsIndividuals within the group with low neighbourhood social capital had an approximately 60% increased odds of high alcohol consumption, more than three times increased odds of smoking and more than double the odds of having used illicit drugs compared with individuals with high neighbourhood social capital. Individuals within the group with low general social trust had approximately 50% increased odds of high alcohol consumption and double the odds of smoking and having used illicit drugs compared with individuals with high general social trust. However, social capital at the contextual level showed very weak effects on alcohol consumption, smoking, and illicit drug use.ConclusionsSocial capital may be an important factor in the future development of prevention programs concerning adolescent substance use. However, further replications of the results as well as identifications of direction of causality are needed.

Parent perceptions of autism severity: Exploring the social ecological context

BackgroundHealth professionals incorporate parent reports into the diagnosis and treatment of children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Yet little is known about the contextual forces that may shape parents' perceptions of their child. ObjectivesThe current study seeks to: 1) compare the social ecological contexts of parents of children with ASD and parents of non-autistic children, and 2) explore the social ecological influences on parents' perception of their child's ASD severity. MethodsThis study employed a cross-sectional analysis of data from the 2007–2008 National Survey of Children's Health (NSCH) in the United States. Social ecological factors of interest included variables depicting family physical environment, family social environment, and individual parent characteristics. ResultsResults indicate that parents of children with ASD had increased odds of reporting poor neighborhood social capital, greater aggravation, more difficulty coping, and lower levels of relationship satisfaction and mental health. Parents' perceptions of their child's ASD severity were associated with several factors of their social ecological context. More severe parent-reported ASD was associated with aspects of the physical environment (rundown housing and garbage on the street), the social environment (parent relationship satisfaction) and individual parent characteristics (parent aggravation and mental health). ConclusionsResults suggest ways that professionals can contextualize parent reports to aid in the diagnosis and treatment of children with ASD. Findings also highlight a need for longitudinal research using well-characterized measures to determine the nature and direction of relationships between contextual factors and parents' perceptions.

Neighbourhood Social Capital and HIV/AIDS: Assessing Neighbourliness and Social Attachment in Rural South African Villages

Although neighbourhood social capital is considered useful and beneficial for individual health, supporting evidence in South Africa is very scant and thin. Against this backdrop, this study assessed the association between neighborhood social structure as a source or dimension of social capital and HIV/AIDS prevention. The purpose of the study was to assess the roles of a neighbourhood measure of social capital and its effects on HIV/ AIDS avoidance. It draws mainly on qualitative ethnographic data gathered in the northern parts of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa. Semi-structured interviews were used to collect information from villagers who were purposively sampled. In this study, the resea rchers aimed to establish the net effect of neighbourhood social ca pital on individual health particularly in the context of HIV/AIDS. Evidence gathered in this study tends to single out the rural neighbourhood as a rich source of HIV/AIDS knowledge and information that can benefit every citizen who is actively engaged or involved in it. The study also established that neighbourhood social capital in rural communities is responsible for the avoidance of HIV/AIDS infection and transmission. Community networks and associations have been identified useful in facilitating the sharing of critical information on HIV/AIDS. Associational membership and the asymmetric exchange of HIV/AIDS knowledge including instrumental resources has been found to be correlated to the adoption of protective behaviour and HIV/AIDS prevention.

Housing Arrays Following Disasters

Displacement and dislocation from homes disrupt fundamental social processes necessary for optimal community functioning. Neighborhood and community social capital, collective efficacy and place attachment are social processes that may be compromised following disaster, conflict, and upheaval. A collaborative approach to the preplanning, design, and creation of temporary and transitional communities following large-scale events is discussed. When architects, planners, and behavioral and health scientists collaborate, preexisting neighborhood social processes can be preserved or even strengthened and can facilitate resilient recovery among vulnerable groups (e.g., elders, children and their care providers, the poor, and underserved minorities). Such a cross-disciplinary, eco-developmental approach should result in more healthful, sustainable, and culturally appropriate individual and community level outcomes for vulnerable subgroups. Observations from housing accommodations following Hurricane Katrina are used to inform future efforts to rebuild neighborhoods following disasters.

You have to be there to enjoy it? Neighbourhood social capital and health

Several studies have shown the positive effect of neighbourhood social capital on health. Existing research, however, has hitherto not studied whether the duration and intensity of exposure to neighbourhood social capital conditions and its effect on health. The aim of this study was to examine whether neighbourhood social capital affects individual's health immediately and equally. We used two waves of the Dutch cross-sectional 'Housing and Living Survey'. One (from 2009) as individual data (n = 65,990), and the other (from 2006) to estimate with ecometric measurements a social capital measure for 3001 Dutch neighbourhoods. We assessed by means of multilevel regression models the combined effect of exposure and amount of neighbourhood social capital on self-rated health. Duration of exposure, measured by the length of stay in the same neighbourhood is not linearly associated with individual health. Health of people who live up to 6 years or >22 years in the same neighbourhood is not affected by neighbourhood social capital. People with young children in the household or elderly were assumed to be more intensively exposed. However, exposure intensity was only found to have an effect for households with young children. Duration and intensity of exposure to neighbourhood social capital, a social aspect of the environment, matters for people's health. Interventions focusing on the health of people with young children may want to stimulate the creation of neighbourhood social capital.

Neighborhood Social Capital, Parenting Strain, and Personal Mastery among Female Primary Caregivers of Children

Neighborhood social capital-resources inherent within community networks-has been identified as a potential facilitator of personal well-being. We test hypotheses concerning how neighborhood social capital moderates the influence of parenting strain on mastery (individuals' understanding of their ability to control personal life circumstances) for female primary caregivers of children. First, we test how different forms of neighborhood social capital-social support, social leverage (information exchange), informal social control, and neighborhood organization participation-modify the association between parenting strain and mastery. Second, we test whether such moderation depends on one's access to these forms via neighbor ties. Analyses of Los Angeles Family and Neighborhood Survey data (N = 765) indicate that the negative relationship between parenting strain and mastery worsens as informal social control increases. Social support and informal social control, however, buffer this parenting strain-mastery relationship when caregivers have stronger ties to neighbors. Our findings implicate mechanisms of "negative social capital" and warrant more nuanced considerations of neighborhood social capital's health-promoting potential.

Neighborhood Associations and Social Capital in Japan

Most households in Japan are a member of their neighborhood association (NHA). Japanese NHAs function as basic organizational building blocks that promote a sense of security and familiarity at the local level and facilitate the general organizational efficiency of Japanese society. In this empirically oriented paper, new information is provided with regard to the organizational structure, activities, autonomy, and social meaning of four NHAs in Hiroshima City. Simply by existing and visibly performing all kinds of functions, such as cleaning the neighborhood or patrolling the local area, Japanese NHAs can be viewed as a kind of social lubricant that increases the overall societal efficiency in Japan.

Community social structure, social capital and adolescent smoking: A multi-level analysis

Using a sample of 6818 individuals in 83 public school districts in Iceland, this study explored the influence of three community characteristics: Residential mobility, proportion of single-parent families, and poverty on adolescent daily smoking. Building on Coleman's social capital theory, we also examined the mediating and moderating role of several measures of social capital. Both self-reported and official data were used to measure key variables. The main findings are consistent with theoretical predictions showing that social capital partly mediates the association between community characteristics and adolescent daily smoking both on the community and individual levels. Likewise, the findings show that the association between individual level poverty and adolescent daily smoking varies across levels of neighborhood social capital.

Health-related behavior as a mechanism behind the relationship between neighborhood social capital and individual health - a multilevel analysis

BackgroundAlthough various studies have found a positive association between neighborhood social capital and individual health, the mechanism explaining this direct effect is still unclear. Neighborhood social capital is the access to resources that are generated by relationships between people in a friendly, well-connected and tightly knit neighborhood community. We expect that the resources generated by cohesive neighborhoods support and influence health -improving behaviors in daily life. We identify five different health-related behaviors that are likely to be affected by neighborhood social capital and test these behaviors separately as mediators.MethodsThe data set pertaining to individual health was taken from the 'health interview' in the 'Second Dutch national survey of general practice' (DNSGP-2, 2002). We combine these individual-level data with data from the 'Dutch housing demand survey' (WBO, 1998 and WoON, 2002) and statistical register information (1995-1999). Per neighborhood 29 WBO respondents, on average, had answered questions regarding social capital in their neighborhood. These variables have been aggregated to the neighborhood level by an ecometric methodology. In the main analysis, in which we tested the mediation, multilevel (ordered) logistic regressions were used to analyze 9253 adults (from the DNSGP-2 data set) from 672 Dutch neighborhoods. In the Netherlands, on average, neighborhoods (4-digit postcodes) comprise 4,000 inhabitants at highly variable population densities. Individual- and neighborhood-level controls have been taken into account in the analyses.ResultsIn neighborhoods with a high level of social capital, people are more physically active and more likely to be non-smokers. These behaviors have positive effects on their health. The direct effect of neighborhood social capital on health is significantly and strongly reduced by physical activity. This study does not support nutrition and sleep habits or moderate alcohol intake as possible explanations of the effects of neighborhoods on health.ConclusionsThis study is one of the first to test a mechanism explaining much of the direct effect of small-area social capital on individual health. Neighborhood interventions might be most successful at improving health if they stimulate both social interaction and physical activity.

Family Affluence, School and Neighborhood Contexts and Adolescents’ Civic Engagement: A Cross‐National Study

Research on youth civic engagement focuses on individual-level predictors. We examined individual- and school-level characteristics, including family affluence, democratic school social climate and perceived neighborhood social capital, in their relation to civic engagement of 15-year-old students. Data were taken from the 2006 World Health Organization Health Behaviour in School-aged Children survey. A sample of 8,077 adolescents in 10th grade from five countries (Belgium, Canada, Italy, Romania, England) were assessed. Multilevel models were analyzed for each country and across the entire sample. Results showed that family affluence, democratic school climate and perceived neighborhood social capital positively related to participation in community organizations. These links were stronger at the aggregate contextual than individual level and varied by country. Canadian youth participated most and Romanian youth least of the five countries. Gender predicted engagement in two countries (girls participate more in Canada, boys in Italy). Findings showed significant contributions of the social environment to adolescents' engagement in their communities.

Are neighbourhood social capital and availability of sports facilities related to sports participation among Dutch adolescents?

BackgroundThe aim of this study is to explore whether availability of sports facilities, parks, and neighbourhood social capital (NSC) and their interaction are associated with leisure time sports participation among Dutch adolescents.MethodsCross-sectional analyses were conducted on complete data from the last wave of the YouRAction evaluation trial. Adolescents (n = 852) completed a questionnaire asking for sports participation, perceived NSC and demographics. Ecometric methods were used to aggregate perceived NSC to zip code level. Availability of sports facilities and parks was assessed by means of geographic information systems within the zip-code area and within a 1600 meter buffer. Multilevel logistic regression analyses, with neighborhood and individual as levels, were conducted to examine associations between physical and social environmental factors and leisure time sports participation. Simple slopes analysis was conducted to decompose interaction effects.ResultsNSC was significantly associated with sports participation (OR: 3.51 (95%CI: 1.18;10.41)) after adjustment for potential confounders. Availability of sports facilities and availability of parks were not associated with sports participation. A significant interaction between NSC and density of parks within the neighbourhood area (OR: 1.22 (90%CI: 1.01;1.34)) was found. Decomposition of the interaction term showed that adolescents were most likely to engage in leisure time sports when both availability of parks and NSC were highest.ConclusionsThe results of this study indicate that leisure time sports participation is associated with levels of NSC, but not with availability of parks or sports facilities. In addition, NSC and availability of parks in the zip code area interacted in such a way that leisure time sports participation is most likely among adolescents living in zip code areas with higher levels of NSC, and higher availability of parks. Hence, availability of parks appears only to be important for leisure time sports participation when NSC is high.

The Effect of Residential Site Development on Residents’ Social Capital : A Comparison between Neighborhood Social Capital and General Social Capital

The Effect of Residential Site Development on Residents’ Social Capital : A Comparison between Neighborhood Social Capital and General Social Capital

Social capital and self‐rated oral health among young people

A few studies have revealed the impact of neighborhood social capital on oral health among young people. We sought to examine the associations of social capital in three settings (families, neighborhoods, and schools) with self-rated oral health among a sample of college students in Japan. Cross-sectional survey of 967 students in Okayama University, aged 18 and 19 years, was carried out. Logistic regression was used to examine the associations of poor self-rated oral health with perceptions of social capital, adjusting for self-perceived household income category and oral health behaviors. The prevalence of subjects with poor self-rated oral health was 22%. Adjusted for gender, self-perceived household income category, dental fear, toothbrush frequency, and dental floss use, poor self-rated oral health was significantly associated with lower level of neighborhood trust [odds ratio (OR) 2.22; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.40-3.54] and lower level of vertical trust in school (OR 1.71; 95% CI: 1.05-2.80). Low informal social control was unexpectedly associated with better oral health (OR 0.54; 95% CI: 0.34-0.85). The association of social capital with self-rated oral health is not uniform. Higher trust is associated with better oral health, whereas higher informal control in the community is associated with worse oral health.

Religious social capital: Its measurement and utility in the study of the social determinants of health

As a social determinant of health, religiosity remains not well understood, despite the prevalence of religious activity and prominence of religious institutions in most societies. This paper introduces a working measure of Religious Social Capital and presents preliminary associations with neighborhood social capital and urban stressors. Religious social capital is defined as the social resources available to individuals and groups through their social connections with a religious community. Domains covered include group membership, social integration, values/norms, bonding/bridging trust as well as social support. Cross-sectional data come from a convenience sample of 104 community dwelling adults residing in a single urban neighborhood in a large US city, who also provided information on neighborhood social capital, and experiences of urban stressors. Results suggest that religious social capital is a valid construct that can be reliably measured. All indicators of religious social capital were higher among those who frequently attended religious services, with the exception of bridging trust (trust of people from different religious groups). A weak, inverse, association was also observed between religious and neighborhood social capital levels. Levels of religious social capital were correlated with higher levels of reported urban stressors, while neighborhood social capital was correlated with lower urban stressor levels. A significant percent of the sample was unaffiliated with a religious tradition and these individuals were more likely to be male, young and more highly educated. Social capital is a promising construct to help elucidate the influence of religion on population health.

Information sharing and human capital efficiency in poor neighborhoods: some graph theoretic applications

This paper develops an analysis of human capital development that explores the relationships between information sharing and human capital efficiency in poor neighborhoods. In deriving the results, a relative connectivity (gamma) index, borrowed from the geography literature, is integrated into a model of neighborhood human capital growth. It is argued in this paper that increases in the sharing efficiency of economic information among individuals in a given neighborhood may have positive impacts on neighborhood human capital efficiency rates. These positive impacts on neighborhood human capital efficiency may likewise help to reduce the poverty rate in that neighborhood. The results established in this paper indicate that not only is the sharing of economic information in urban neighborhoods important for neighborhood human capital development but also that neighborhood income sharing, the sharing of neighborhood social capital, and the diversity of neighborhood social capital may all have a beneficial influence on both the human capital efficiency rate and the rates of neighborhood poverty.