Economic Growth, Technical Progress, and Social Capital: the Inverted U Hypothesis

Antoci, Angelo and Sabatini, Fabio and Sodini, Mauro (2011): Economic Growth, Technical Progress, and Social Capital: the Inverted U Hypothesis.

Abstract

We set up a theoretical framework to analyze the possible role of economic growth and technical progress in the erosion of social capital. Under certain parameters, the relationship between technical progress and social capital can take the shape of an inverted U curve. We show the circumstances allowing the economy to follow trajectories where the stock of social capital grows endogenously and unboundedly.

• Item Type: MPRA Paper
• Language: English
• Keywords: Social capital; technological progress; economic growth, social interactions
• Subjects: O - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth > O1 - Economic Development > O11 - Macroeconomic Analyses of Economic Development; J - Labor and Demographic Economics > J2 - Demand and Supply of Labor > J22 - Time Allocation and Labor Supply; O - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth > O3 - Innovation ; Research and Development ; Technological Change ; Intellectual Property Rights > O33 - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences ; Diffusion Processes; Z - Other Special Topics > Z1 - Cultural Economics ; Economic Sociology ; Economic Anthropology > Z13 - Economic Sociology ; Economic Anthropology ; Social and Economic Stratification; O - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth > O1 - Economic Development > O12 - Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development

References

Adman, P., 2008. Does Workplace Experience Enhance Political Participation? A Critical Test of a Venerable Hypothesis. Political Behavior 30, 115-138.

Akçomakak, I.S., ter Weel, B., 2009. Social capital, innovation and growth: Evidence from Europe. European Economic Review 53 (2009), 544-567.

Antoci, A., Sabatini, F., Sodini, M. 2011. The Solaria Syndrome: Social Capital in a Growing Hyper-Technological Economy. Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization. In press.

Antoci, A., Sacco P. L., Vanin, P. 2001. Economic Growth and Social Poverty: The Evolution of Social Participation. Discussion paper 13/2001, Bonn Econ Discussion Papers, University of Bonn.

Antoci, A., Sacco P. L., Vanin, P., 2005. On the Possible Conflict between Economic Growth and Social Development. In: Gui, B., Sugden, R. (Eds). Economics and Social Interaction: Accounting for Interpersonal Relations. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Antoci, A., Sacco P. L., Vanin, P., 2007. Social Capital Accumulation and the Evolution of Social Participation. Journal of Socio-Economics 35, 128-143.

Antoci, A., Sacco P. L., Vanin, P., 2008. Participation, Growth and Social Poverty: Social Capital in a Homogeneous Society. Open Economics Journal 1, 1-13.

Beugelsdijk, S., van Schaik, A. B.T.M., 2005. Social Capital and Growth in European Regions: An Empirical Test. European Journal of Political Economy. 21, 301-325.

Bjørnskov, C., 2010. How Does Trust Affect Economic Growth? Eastern Economic Journal, forthcoming.

Boase, J., Horrigan, J., Wellman, B., Rainie, L., 2006. The Strength of Internet Ties. Washington, DC: Pew Internet and American Life Project.

Brady, H. E., Verba, S., Schlozman, K. L., 1995. Beyond SES: A resource model of political participation. American Political Science Review 89, 271-294.

Bruni, L., Stanca, L. 2008. Watching alone: Relational goods, television and happiness. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization 65, 506-528.

Burn, S. M., Konrad, A. M., 1987. Political participation: A matter of community, stress, job autonomy, and contact by political organizations. Political Psychology 8, 125-138.

Burt, R. S., 1999. The Social Capital of Opinion Leaders. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science 566, 37-54.

Coleman, J. (1988). Social Capital in the Creation of Human Capital. American Journal of Sociology 94, 95-120.

Coleman, J., 1990. Foundations of Social Theory. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.

Corneo, G., 2005. Work and television. European Journal of Political Economy 21 99- 113.

Gershuny, J., 2003. Web Use and Net Nerds: A Neofunctionalist Analysis of the Impact of Information Technology in the Home. Social Forces 82, 141-68.

Glanville, J. (2004). Voluntary associations and social network structure: Why organizational location and type are important. Sociological Forum 19(3), 465–491.

Goul Andersen, J., Hoff, J., 2001. Democracy and citizenship in Scandinavia. New York: Palgrave.

Greenberg, E. S., 1986. Workplace democracy: The political effects of participation. Ithaca: Cornell University Press.

Hirsch, F., 1976. Social Limits to Growth. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press.

Hirschman, A., 1982. Rival Interpretations of Market Society: Civilizing, Destructive or Feeble?. Journal of Economic Literature 20, 1463-1484.

Hooghe, M. (2003). Why Should We Be Bowling Alone? Results from a Belgian Survey on Civic Participation. Voluntas: International Journal of Voluntary and Nonprofit Organizations 14 (1), 41-59.

Karasek, R. A. Jr., 1976. The impact of the work environment on life outside the job. Stockholm: Swedish Institute for Social Research (SOFI).

Knack, S., Keefer, P., 1997. Does Social Capital have an Economic Payoff? The Quarterly Journal of Economics 112 (4), 1251-1288.

Labonne, J., Chase, R. S., 2010. A Road To Trust. Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization 74 (3), 253-261.

McPherson, M., Smith-Lovin, L., 2006. Social Isolation in America: Changes in Core Discussion Networks over Two Decades. American Sociological Review 71, 353-375.

Mutz, D. C., Mondak, J. J., 2006. The workplace as a context for cross-cutting political discourse. The Journal of Politics 68, 140-155.

Nie, N. H., D., Hillygus, S., Erbring, L., 2002. Internet Use, Interpersonal Relations and Sociability: A Time Diary Study. In Wellman, B., Haythornthwaite, C. (Eds). The Internet in Everyday Life. Oxford, England: Blackwell.

Paldam, M., Svendsen, G. T., 2000. An essay on social capital: looking for the fire behind the smoke. European Journal of Political Economy 18 (2), 339-366.

Pateman, C., 1970. Participation and democratic theory. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Peterson, S. A., 1992. Workplace politicization and its political spillovers: A research note. Economic and Industrial Democracy 13, 511-524.

Putnam, R.D., 2000. Bowling Alone : The Collapse and Revival of American Community. New York: Touchstone Books.

Putnam, R.D., Leonardi, R., Nanetti, R.Y., 1993. Making Democracy Work. Princeton: Princeton University Press.

Rahn, W. M., Brehm, J., Carlson, N., 1999. National Elections as Institutions for Generating Social Capital. In

Skocpol, T., Fiorina, M. (Eds). Civic Engagement in American Democracy. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution.

Renshon, S. A., 2000. Political Leadership as Social Capital: Governing in a Divided National Culture. Political Psychology 21 (1), 199-226.

Roch, C., 2005. The Dual Roots of Opinion Leadership. Journal of Politics 67 (1), 110-131.

Rodrik, D., 1999. Where Did All the Growth Go? External Shocks, Social Conflict, and Growth Collapses. Journal of Economic Growth 4, 385-412.

Routledge, B., von Amsberg, J., 2003. Social Capital and Growth. Journal of Monetary Economics 50 (1), 167-193.

Schur, L. 2003. Employment and the creation of an active citizenry. British Journal of Industrial Relations 41, 751-771.

Van Ingen, E., Dekker, P. (2011). Dissolution of Associational Life? Testing the Individualization and Informalization Hypotheses on Leisure Activities in The Netherlands Between 1975 and 2005. Social Indicators Research 100, 209-224.

Verba, S., Schlozman, K. L., Brady, H. E., 1995. Voice and equality: Civic voluntarism in American politics. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press.

Wellman, B. (2001). Physical place and cyberplace: The rise of personalized networking. International Journal of Urban and Regional Research 25(2), 227–252.

Wellman, B., Hogan, B., Berg, K., Boase, J., Carrasco, J. A., Cote, R., Kayahara, J., Kennedy, T. L. M., Tran, P., 2006. Connected Lives: The Project. In: Purcell, P. (Ed). Networked Neighborhoods. London: Springer.