TABLE 3.
Examples of measures that have been used to assess social capital at the various levels
| Level | Qualitative or quantitative survey data sources | Objective or secondary data sources |
|---|---|---|
| Individual | Access to employment opportunities through informal contacts. Willingness to help others and examples of favors provided | Membership of clubs and groups |
| Presence of close relatives or friends nearby. Trust in others generally and in immediate relational contexts. Trust in others generally and in immediate relational contexts | Evidence of exclusion of particular population groups from club or group membership | |
| Availability of perceived and actual support | ||
| (Instrumental, emotional and informational) | ||
| Neighborhood | Residents trust in-service providers (e.g., doctor, banks, teachers) | Types and “density” of cooperative groups (e.g., credit or produce coops) |
| Attitudes toward and participation in local governance | Examples of collective action on a neighborhood issue | |
| Perceptions of trust and helpfulness of others at neighborhood level Intratrust between group members as well as group trust of others | Membership rates and decision-making processes in community organizations Uptake or diffusion of new ideas (e.g., farming practices and immunization | |
| Perceptions of decision-making processes, fairness, tolerance of diversity | Participation in local elections and decision making | |
| City | Awareness of community networks, groups, support services | Presence of and access to support systems, e.g., welfare, healthcare, education, and housing assistance |
| Trust in city governance systems | Policies/laws that support or erode social capital | |
| Adequacy of services and level and quality of services and built environment | Mapping of relationships and networks that exist among formal and informal institutions | |
| Voting patterns for civic leaders | Access to government or NGO funds for social or infrastructure projects relative to other cities | |
| Homogeneity/heterogeneity of neighborhoods | ||
| Number and range of active civil society groups and projects | ||
| Case studies and outcomes of cooperatives and civil society initiatives (e.g., group lending | ||
| Aggregated individual responses to sense of empowerment and input to decision making | ||
| Regional/national | Case studies of civil society groups and changes and capacity building brought about through these | Voting participation rates |
| Examples of collective action on an issue and outcomes of this | Monitoring number, range, and outcomes associated with of active civil society groups and projects |