CREATION AND RETURNS OF SOCIAL CAPITAL: A NEW RESEARCH PROGRAM; ED. BY HENK FLAP

An important new contribution to the social sciences is the idea of social capital. Social capital consists of the resources that are embedded within people's social networks. Validated by empirical research, this book presents social capital research as an integrated theoretical research programme. The programme consists of two hypotheses. The social capital hypothesis holds that those with better social capital are better able to realise their ends. And according to the investment hypothesis people invest in ties to the degree that these are instrumental in achieving their ends. The volume is organised into six sections, each addressing a fundamental issue in the research programme. Firstly, the research programme is described. The second section presents the distribution of social capital among citizens of different societies using large-scale social surveys. In the third section experimental and simulation studies show how social capital is created. The fourth section analyses various returns of social capital such as educational and occupational attainment and performance at work. The fifth issue is how social capital should be measured in a more standardised way. And finally 1. Creation And Returns Of Social Capital: A New-research Program / Henk Flap -- 2. The Distribution Of Gendered Social Capital In Canada / Bonnie H. Erickson -- 3. Does Social Capital Offset Social And Economic Inequalities? Social Capital In Everyday Life / Alain Degenne, Marie-odile Lebeaux And Yannick Lemel -- 4. Information And The Creation And Return Of Social Capital: An Experimental Study / Arno Riedl And Erans Van Winden -- 5. Social Capital In Exchange Networks: A Simulation Study Of Network Evolution / Phillip Bonacich -- 6. Social Capital In Education: Functional Communities Around High Schools In The Netherlands / Anne Bert Dijkstra, Rene Veenstra And Jules Peschar -- 7. Job Search In Urban China: Gender, Network Chains, And Embedded Resources / Nan Lin -- 8. Social Networks And Performance At Work: A Study Of The Returns Of Social Capital In Doing One's Job / Beate Volker And Henk Flap -- 9. Proposals For The Measurement Of Individual Social Capital / Martin Van Der Gaag And Tom Snijders -- 10. Measuring Social Capital By Network Capacity Indices / Ove Frank -- 11. Social Capital And Economics / Martin Paldam And Gert Tinggaard Svendsen -- 12. Role And Rise Of Social Capital / Michel Forse. Edited By Henk Flap And Beate Völker. Papers Presented At A Conference Of International Scholars In Amsterdam, Held In 1999, And Organized Around The Research Of The Scale Research Program Supported By A Grant From Nwo [nederlandse Organisatie Voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek], Project Number 510-05-0200. Includes Bibliographical References And Indexes. The idea of a social capital research program has become increasingly significant within the social sciences. This collection of essays contributes to a theoretical integration as well as standardization of measurement instruments and co-ordination of empirical research on the significance of social capital.