The Social Capital Effects: Resources, Tie Strength, & Digital Divides
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The Social Capital Effects Resources, Tie Strength, & Digital Divides Wenhong Chen UT Austin
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More than 20 percent of Americans still have no access to the Internet. How to get them connected is critical to narrowing the digital divides. Drawing on a two-wave national panel dataset, this paper examines the implications of social capital for Internet access and use. Results demonstrate social capital facilitates Internet access and use. In particularly, resource-rich bonding social capital helps overcome the digital divides both in access, general use, and online communication. Before the Internet can revitalize social capital, there must be the right social capital in place to close the digital divides. Highlighting the effect of social connectivity on digital connectivity, the findings have important implications for policymakers and practitioners.
Transcript of The Social Capital Effects: Resources, Tie Strength, & Digital Divides
The Social Capital EffectsResources, Tie Strength, & Digital Divides
Wenhong ChenUT Austin
Just in case (source: PEW; ISI Web of Knowledge)
Macro-level: social structural context • Level of socioeconomic development • Governmental policy• NGO/ International development initiatives• Technological infrastructure• Culture
Individual• SES• Gender• Ethnicity• Life-stage• Language
Level of analysis Chen and Wellman 2005
macro
meso
micro
Meso-level• Community resources• Organizations• Social capital
Access
Causes ConsequencesDigital Divides
Use
Meso-level• Social network/Social capital• Civic engagement
Individual• Psychological well-being• Labor market performance • Entrepreneurial activities • Human capital • Cultural capital
Societal Impact• Socioeconomic development• Social inclusion
• Information want-nots or information have-nots (van Dijk 2006) • Technically and socially disconnected with the Internet
– More than 80% of nonusers have no household members using the Internet (Smith 2010).
– About two-thirds of American households without broadband access have no household members using the Internet at any place (NTIA 2010).
A Heated Debate
Social CapitalInternet
Access & Use
The Other Direction
Social CapitalInternet
Access & Use
• The diffusion literature (Rogers 1962; Valente 1995)• Prerequisite (Putnam 2000)• Network externality (DiMaggio and Cohen 2003)
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The Network Source of Social Capital
• Social structure that facilitates or constrains an individual’s instrumental or expression action due to – Network membership (Putnam, Bourdieu)– Network structure (Coleman, Burt)– Network resources (Lin, Erickson)
Bonding/Bridging Strong/Weak TiesDef Strength Weakness
Strong Ties
Ties people feel close to Involve emotional bond,
trust, and reciprocity Require more time,
energy, and commitment to nurture
Attitude & Identity Solidarity Social support Fine-grained info Tacit knowledge Collaboration
Redundant info
Isolation Legitimacy
discount
Weak Ties
Ties people do not feel close to
only communicate occasionally with
Fresh information Diverse perspective Cognitive flexibility
Not all weak ties bridge
(Putnam, Granovetter, Marsden, Burt, Uzzi etc. )
Good and bad social capital• The embedded resources in one’s social network
– affects the outcome of social action (Lin 2001; Lin and Dumin 1986)
– social capital without embedded resources = bridge to nowhere (Portes 1998; Portes and Landolt 1996; Smith 2005)
• Good social capital– potential benefits generated from links to resource-rich
contacts • connections to people with high occupational status
• Bad social capital– cost and liabilities generated from links to resource-poor
contacts• connections with low occupational status (Hsung and Breiger
2008)
Bonding
Bridging
Bad
Access &
Use
+
+
+
_
Good
SES
Good Bonding
Bad Bonding
Bad Bridging
Access &
Use
Good Bridging
+
+
_
_
SES
Data and Analysis
• Social Capital in the US Survey– a national random digit dial telephone survey of currently
or previously employed Americans aged from 22 to 65
• Wave 1 2004/2005: N=3000, RR=43%• Wave 2 2007: N=941, RR=31%• Weighted
ego
GSS Name Generator
ego
Position Generator
Measuring social networks
• The Name Generator core discussion networks – an artificial limit ; GSS: 5 alters, discussed important matters – small, strong tie centered, dense, & homogeneous (Marsden 1987)
• The Position Generator the broader networks – alters who fill a variety of positions– sampled from a full list of all occupations– more effective in capturing weak ties (Erickson 2004)– content free (Van der Gaag 2004) Adapted from James Moody and Nan Lin
The Position GeneratorPosition Wave 1
Nurse 75%Lawyer 62%Hair Dresser 61%Policeman 52%Computer Programmer 52%Teacher 51%Farmer 47%Receptionist 41%Professor 41%Bookkeeper 39%Janitor 34%Personnel Manager 33%Administrative Assistant 30%Factory Operator 27%Babysitter 27%Writer 25%Security Guard 22%CEO 20%Production Manager 16%Congressman 11%Taxi Driver 7%Hotel Bell Boy 2%
• I am going to ask some general questions about jobs some people you know may now have. These people include your relatives, friends and acquaintances (acquaintances are people who know each other by face and name). If there are several people you know who have that kind of job, please tell me the one that occurs to you first. Is there anyone you know who is a _____?
Bonding
Bridging
Bad
Access
+
+
+
_
Good
SES
Good Bonding
Bad Bonding
Bad Bridging
Access
Good Bridging
+
+
_
_
SES
Bonding
Bridging
Bad
Use
+
+
+
_
Good
SES
Good Bonding
Bad Bonding
Bad Bridging
Use
Good Bridging
+
+
_
_
SES
Summary
Social Capital Internet Access
Online Communication
Bonding H1a H1b + Bridging H2a + H2b Good H3a + H3b Bad H4a - H4b Good Bonding H5a + H5b + Good Bridging H6a + H6b Bad Bonding H7a - H7b Bad Bridging H8a - H8b
Implications
Internet Access & UseSocial Capital
• Longitudinal data• Refined analysis of social capital• Information want-nots good bonding
social capital have-nots
Findings & Contribution
• Richer information on Internet use and tangible impacts on human, cultural, and social capital.
• Access beyond home (e.g., workplace and community anchor institutions)
• Process: exposure; support; peer influence
Future Research
Related Paper
• Chen, Wenhong. “The Impacts of Social Capital on the Digital Divides in America.” The Information Society 29(1):13-25.
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