ERIC Number: EJ939028
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2011-Jun
Pages: 28
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0036-0112
EISSN: N/A
Individual Participation in Collective Action in the Context of a Caribbean Island State: Testing the Effects of Multiple Dimensions of Social Capital
Jicha, Karl A.; Thompson, Gretchen H.; Fulkerson, Gregory M.; May, Jonathan E.
Rural Sociology, v76 n2 p229-256 Jun 2011
This article presents the findings of a case study examining the relationship between social capital and individual participation in collective action on a Caribbean island recovering from devastation inflicted by Hurricanes Ivan and Emily. Using data drawn from 114 residential surveys on the island of Carriacou, Grenada, over the summer of 2006, we empirically test social capital as a predictor of individual participation in both formal and informal civic events. In addition, we further the theoretical development of the concept of social capital by independently testing the relationships between its multiple dimensions, specifically social networks; interpersonal trust; and norms of reciprocity. We find that associational membership and age are the two strongest predictors, while interpersonal trust, gender, and marital status are also significant. Our path analysis reveals that there is not a significant direct effect between associational membership and interpersonal trust, suggesting that the two dimensions may have independent, yet complementary, influences. This study sheds light on factors influencing citizen participation in "civic" forms of collective action in a developing region of the world, while demonstrating the multidimensional nature of social capital.
Descriptors: Foreign Countries, Social Capital, Citizen Participation, Case Studies, Social Networks, Trust (Psychology), Group Membership, Age, Sex, Marital Status, Path Analysis
John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Subscription Department, 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030-5774. Tel: 800-825-7550; Tel: 201-748-6645; Fax: 201-748-6021; e-mail: subinfo@wiley.com; Web site: https://secure.interscience.wiley.com/cgi-bin/jhome/112782101
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Grenada
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A