Research Findings on Social Capital and Matters in Brasov Community
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Bulletin of the Transilvania University of Braşov Series VII: Social Sciences • Law • Vol. 6 (55) No. 2 - 2013 RESEARCH FINDINGS ON SOCIAL CAPITAL AND MATTERS IN BRASOV COMMUNITY. A SECONDARY ANALYSIS APPROACH Claudiu COMAN1 Abstract: The aim of this article is to present new research findings regarding sustainable development projects in Brasov County, depending on the social matters and social capital. The method used is a secondary analysis of data collected in a 2009 survey carried out on 3960 persons, representative for Brasov County. This new approach manages to reveal a classification of the Brasov County localities according to the social capital typology (bonding or bridging) and according to the identified social matters’ categories. The data indicates new perspectives on the two types of social capital and on their relation to social matters, representing guidelines for future research. Key words: social capital, social matters, secondary analysis, bonding social capital, bridging social capital. 1. Introduction: conceptual with their values and measures must be clarifications taken to the end of eliminating such a situation [18]. These authors underline the Social matters are not rooted in the following defining elements of social social circumstances but in the matters: presumptions of the interested parties and 1. The situation presumed to be of the partisans committed to win over the problematic. The existence of the political acceptance in the sense of situations is supported by people talking perceiving certain circumstances as about it, by mass-media airing it; problems, depending on which said 2. The inconsistency of such a situation perceptions reflects the evolution of the with certain values and interests. Any social matters’ construction process situation defined as problematic in terms (Spector and Kitsuse, 1977; Jenness, of certain set of values; 1993). Thus, the study of social matter 3. The existence of a significant number becomes the study of social construction of people defining the situation as being a of reality itself. We may regard the problem. It is not necessarily a matter of existence of a social matter when a how many people are there but how well significant number of people consider a organized they are or the positions they certain social situation to be inconsistent occupy in society; 1 Faculty of Sociology and Communication, Transilvania University of Brasov. 112 Bulletin of the Transilvania University of Braşov • Series VII • Vol. 6 (55) No. 2 - 2013 4. Call for action to solve the structures, trust. Civil commitment may problematic situation. The people affected be measured through the following in their values and interests by said markers: vote attendance, reading the situation tell each other about that and newspapers and appearance in similar convey to the public the need for association and literary congregations. measures to solve the problematic or The more ‘horizontal’ the structure of disturbing situation [18, p. 4-6]. social networks providing personal social Coleman adapted the theory of rational contact between its members, the higher choice, based on the methodological the levels of social interaction, of individualism, where he construed social communication and of trust. Trust capital as the concept that was missing for facilitates the cooperation and aids the a complex analysis of the large scale solution of misunderstandings at the level social phenomena. Nonetheless, Bourdieu of joint actions. Solid trust favors a low analyzed the social capital concept to the cost of economic transactions, since end of refining his theory on hierarchic people are more willing to invest in joint social structures [7, p.501]. assets when „free riders” are a rare breed. To Robert Putnam, „social capital When civil commitment is less powerful, concerns aspects of social organization – economy is expected to be week, networks, norms and trust – that allow the leadership ineffective and corrupt. There participants to act together more is a connection between social capital and effectively to the end of achieving joint social matters of a community: political goals” [17, p.664-665]. Social capital is involvement and participation, education, seen as a prerequisite for economic safety of urban setting, pollution expansion and effective leadership since: prevention, health, unemployment and it strengthens the norms of generalized many other, all influenced by the level of reciprocity; facilitates the coordination social capital of the people in question and communication, contributing thus to [22]. the conveyance of information on the level of trust of other individuals/ groups; 2. Types of social capital: bonding and keeps alive the memory of successful past bridging cooperation, creating a „cultural shape” where future cooperation may take place Narayan (1999) and Woolcock (2000) (Putnam, 1993). This way, Robert Putnam introduce the distinction between bonding places social capital in connection with and bridging types of social capital [13], social development, in the sense that a [23]. The bonding social capital is rich communitarian life contributes to the relevant for the life of small, closed creation of public asset, facilitating the communities that are dominated by reproduction and setting of all types of relations developed within the group of capital. However, in the name of nearest affiliation, often overlapping efficiency, public politics in the field of kinship, and by trust towards any social capital must be integrated into corporate actor, individual or outside general politics of economic capital institution of the group. The bonding expansion (physical and financial), human social capital usually contributes to the and social [22]. flourish of the familial amorality The operationalization of the social described by Banfield (1958), the capital as concept aims its relation to: community becoming socially isolated civil commitment, social network from the rest of the world and working C. COMAN: Research Findings on Social Capital and Matters in Brasov Community… 113 according to its own set of unwritten copy. The social networks of the poor are rules, despite the possible spatial smaller than those of the other individuals interference with other groups, and tend to limit to the vicinity. The result collectivity and individuals [2]. is the formation of closed groups, poor The bridging social capital implies on groups, with a separate social capital, the other hand the establishment of practically cut down from evolution. relations and trust amongst other groups besides the primary, higher levels of trust 3. Measurement and data obtained in institution, participation in social from field research relations materialized in partnerships. The bridging social capital’s main role is A secondary analysis has been made favoring evolution [apud 21, p.13]. The over the database collected for the “Social bonding social capital concerns the matters’ map” research, made in 2009 in horizontal relationships between members Brasov County. In this way, researchers of the social network perceived similarly are overcoming this final cost obstacle by and may be associated with the social engaging in secondary analysis, building cohesion concept. The bridging social research projects around the analysis or capital is more concerned with the vertical reanalysis of data originally collected by relationships established between various someone else [8, p. 144]. Secondary groups of the society that do not analysis may be performed by taking necessarily share similar social identities, information from sources other than that do not have the same take on social surveys, but survey data are increasingly justice, on solidarity within society in likely candidates for secondary analysis general [15, p.256]. Thus, the bridging because of the quantity of such data and social capital is the one linking the social because of their availability in an groups and maintaining the society united inexpensive and well-organized form. and operational while the bonding social The secondary analysis constitutes a capital is the one separating the groups, complex approach to the data with well dividing the societies. The first serves as determined application rules and specific glue and catalyst for the generation of methodological principles. The data may public asset, favouring the civil have been collected for and already participation and activism. The latter analyzed by researchers, but new hinders the creation of public assets [22]. information or scientific interest may lead Social capital may have negative and someone to reanalyze the data [8, p. 144]. positive effects on poverty and evolution. It requires the filing of sociological Those who hold more information/ empirical researches. At present, a strong knowledge, are the same who present high revival is registered, being distinctive for levels of income and the coveted positions the current evolutional stage of socio- in society, hence the poor people’s human empirical researches (actual, field tendency to adopt imitative strategies with research). To a certain extent, it resembles positive effects on evolution. On the other the communication content analysis; they hand, social networks generally include are both applied to certain information individuals with the same set of generated by someone else, with knowledge. Thus, those with less different purpose than the one we pursue. information and skills are more likely to “The fundamental difference