Social Capital At The Community Level

In Social Capital at the Community Level, John Halstead and Steven Deller examine social capital formation beyond the individual level through a variety of disciplines: planning, economics, regional development, sociology, as well as non-traditional approaches like engineering and built environmental features. The notion of social capital in community and economic development has become a focus of intense interest for policy makers, practitioners, and academics. The notion is that communities with higher levels of social capital (networks, trust, and norms) will prosper both economically and socially. In a practical sense, how do communities use the notion of social capital to build policies and strategies to move their community forward? Are all forms of social capital the same and do all have a positive influence on the community? To help gain insights into these fundamental questions Social Capital at the Community Level takes a holistic, interdisciplinary or systems approach to thinking about the community. While those who study social capital will acknowledge the need for an interdisciplinary approach, most stay within their disciplinary silos. One could say there is strong bonding social capital within disciplines but little bridging social capital across disciplines. The contributors to Social Capital at the Community Level have made an attempt to build that bridging social capital. While disciplinary biases and research approaches are evident there is significant overlap about how people with different disciplinary perspectives think about social capital and how it can be applied at the community level. This can be from neighborhoods addressing a localized issue to a global response to a natural disaster. This book is an invaluable resource for scholars, researchers and policy makers of community and economic development, as well as rural sociologists and planners looking to understand the opaque process of social capital formation in communities. Review: This is an important and timely book. By focusing on community social capital, the contextual nature of the variable and its implications for social justice are illuminated. The authors confront potential of social capital for increasing as well as decreasing inequality and poverty theoretically, empirically, and with concrete cases. - Cornelia Butler Flora, Charles F. Curtiss Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Sociology, Agriculture and Life Sciences, Kansas State University The field of community development witnessed something of a 'paradigm shift' with the emergence of local asset-based strategies. None of these has proven to be as significant as that of social capital formation. This book is the very first comprehensive assessment and discussion of social capital in the context of community development practice and thus constitutes a major contribution. - Mark Lapping, Distinguished Professor, Edmund S. Muskie School of Public Service, University of Southern Maine Social Capital at the Community Level is a unique contribution to social capital and community development literature. Bringing together scholars from four disciplines, the book provides new insight into how social capital works at the local level and how it affects important economic and social outcomes (small business development, poverty reduction, trust, ...). It is a must-read for those involved in local community development and rural wealth creation efforts. - Bruce Weber, Professor of Applied Economics, Oregon State University