Description
Book SynopsisSince the mid 1990s, theoretical and empirical research on how social capital affects well-being has blossomed in the field of economic development. Based on noted theoretical and empirical work in other social sciences, this concept is now becoming a vital new tool for economists.
The chapters in this volume explore the challenges and opportunities raised by this concept for researchers, practitioners and teachers. Social Capital and Economic Development is based upon a consistent, policy-based vision of how social capital affects well-being in developing countries. The book includes a comparison of experimental and empirical evidence on social capital and a range of field-based evidence, from environmental to cultural to nation-building and on how investment in social capital can improve well-being. The contributions are from leading development economists as well as non-economic social scientists with expertise in this field.
Development academics, practitioners, and environmental economists will find this coherent volume of great interest, as well as those involved in public policy in the developing world.
Trade Review'. . . this book enables one to form a well-informed opinion or critique about the concept of social capital. . . it serves its purpose eminently well.' -- Journal of Social and Economic Development
'This book presents a fine selection of papers about social capital. . . Personally, I enjoyed reading the book from the start. The different chapters present an interesting mixture of contributions written by researchers with mostly an economic background trying to cope with an analytical concept that originates from sociology. This is a great intellectual challenge. But the different examples show that the authors manage to deal with this challenge, and it is a road worthwhile to be taken. . . I really recommend this book to development economists as well as sociologists.' -- Lutz Laschewski, Quarterly Journal of International Agriculture
'The book is carefully edited and thoughtfully arranged. . .' -- Robert Tripp, Development Policy Review
'This book would well serve an introductory course on development economics, to ensure that students do not lose sight of the value of families, friendships, culture, civic society, and social virtues for the well-being of peoples. Often, such things get left out because the do not fit into the working model. The essays in this volume seek to make room in the model.' -- Raymond J. de Souza, Markets & Morality
Table of ContentsContents Preface PART I THE HISTORY AND SCOPE OF THE CONCEPT OF SOCIAL CAPITAL IN DEVELOPMENT ECONOMICS 1 Social capital and well-being in developing countries: an introduction Jonathan Isham, Thomas Kelly and Sunder Ramaswamy 2 Social capital in theory and practice: where do we stand? Michael Woolcock 3 Reflections on social and antisocial capital Paul Streeten 4 Bonds and bridges: social capital and poverty Deepa Narayan PART II EMPIRICAL AND EXPERIMENTAL EVIDENCE ON SOCIAL CAPITAL AND WELL-BEING 5 Social capital, education and credit markets: empirical evidence from Burkina Faso Christiaan Grootaert, Gi-Taik Oh and Anand Swamy 6 The interactions of bonding, bridging and linking dimensions of social capital: evidence from rural Paraguay José Molinas 7 Measuring social capital: adding field experimental methods to the analytical toolbox Jeffrey P. Carpenter 8 Rethinking local commons dilemmas: lessons from experimental economics in the field Juan-Camilo Cardenas PART III INVESTING IN SOCIAL CAPITAL IN THE FIELD 9 Can investments in social capital improve local development and environmental outcomes? A cost–benefit framework to assess the policy options Jonathan Isham 10 Social capital and environmental management: culture, perceptions and action among slum dwellers in Bangkok Amrita Daniere, Lois M. Takahashi and Anchana NaRanong 11 Building networks of social capital for grassroots development among indigenous communities in Bolivia and Mexico Kevin Healy 12 Resilient communities: building the social foundations of human security Nat Colletta and Michelle Cullen Index
