The handbook of social capital / edited by Dario Castiglione, Jan W. Van Deth, and Guglielmo Wolleb.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Castiglione, Dario.

Deth, Jan W. van.

Wolleb, Guglielmo.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Social capital (Sociology).

Physical Description:

xxi, 722 pages : illustrations ; 26 cm

Place of Publication:

Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 2008.

Summary:

Social capital is a relatively new concept in the social sciences. In the last twenty years or so it has come to indicate that networks of social relationships represent a 'resource' for both the individual and society, since they provide support for the individual and facilitate collective action. Although this is not an entirely new idea, the more systematic way in which social capital captures such an intuition has created a new theoretical paradigm and helped to develop a series of innovative research programmes in politics, economics, and the study of human well-being. The concept has gained currency beyond academia, extending its influence to political and policy-making circles at local, national, and international levels. It has also affected the way in which social surveys are conceived and public policies assessed. As the idea of social capital has spread, the literature about it has increased exponentially. After twenty years of rapid expansion it is time for a more considered and critical assessment of how the original concept has been adapted and refined, and how successful its application has been. The Handbook of Social Capital intends to do precisely that. It offers a state-of-the-art view of discussions about the concept of social capital and the way in which it has been applied in empirical research.

The organization of the Handbook reflects this intention by focusing on conceptual development and analysis in the first part; by identifying two main areas of research in which social capital has favoured the development of new and influential research programmes-political participation in democratic societies, and economic development; and by exploring the more normative and policy oriented consequences of social capital in the final part. All chapters comprising the volume were specifically written for the Handbook by some of the main experts in the field. The book provides an authoritative and innovative introduction to the study of social capital.

Contents:

Social capital's fortune: An introduction / Dario Castiglione, Jan W. van Deth, Guglielmo Wolleb 1

Introduction: Conceptual issues in social capital theory / Dario Castiglione 13

1 The two meanings of social capital / Hartmut Esser 22

2 A network theory of social capital / Nan Lin 50

3 Social capital and collective action / T. K. Ahn, Elinor Ostrom 70

4 Trust as a moral value / Eric M. Uslaner 101

5 The nature and logic of bad social capital / Mark E. Warren 122

6 Measuring social capital / Jan W. van Deth 150

7 Social capital as a research programme / Dario Castiglione 177

Part II Democratic Politics

Introduction: Social capital and democratic politics / Jan W. van Deth 199

8 Social capital and civic engagement: A comparative perspective / Sigrid Rossteutscher 208

9 Trust and Politics / Ken Newton 241

10 Political institutions and generalized trust / Bo Rothstein, Dietlind Stolle 273

11 Interest groups, social capital, and democratic politics / William A. Maloney 303

12 Neighbourhood politics / Herman Lelieveldt 327

13 Social capital in multicultural societies / Meindert Fennema, Jean Tillie 349

Part III Economic Development

Introduction: Social capital and economic development / Guglielmo Wolleb 373

14 Social capital in economics / Domenico Cersosimo, Rosanna Nistico 386

15 A relational approach to the theory and practices of economic development / Michael Woolcock, Elizabeth Radin 411

16 Social capital and economic development / Anirudh Krishna 438

17 Microfinance and social capital / Laura Foschi 467

18 Social capital and economic performance in transition economies / Martin Raiser 491

19 Social capital, institutions, and collective action between firms / Alessandro Arrighetti, Gilberto Seravalli, Guglielmo Wolleb 520

Part IV Between Community and Society

Introduction: Social capital between community and society / Dario Castiglione 555

20 Voluntary associations and socialization / Marc Hooghe 568

21 Membership and inequality / Steven N. Durlauf 594

22 Social capital and the capability approach / Flavio Comim 624

23 Social capital and welfare policy / Bill Jordan 652

24 Public policy and social capital / Vivien Lowndes, Lawrence Pratchett 677.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and indexes.

ISBN:

9780199271238

0199271232

OCLC:

174138861