The research of social capital of the local action groups – the concept of research, analysis and conclusions

Abstract

The article presents the objectives and results of studies carried out under a grant funded by the National Science Center “The structure and determinants of social capital in local action groups”. The concept of research shows objectives, issues, hypotheses, selection of units for testing, methods and techniques of analysis, including basic procedures. The second part presents the results of the study, that are the basis for testing hypotheses about the level and structure of LAG’s social capital and conditions of economic and social activity in the area of partnerships, for the characteristics of their social capital. The results show a relatively high (as in rural areas) level of social capital within LAG, in large part conditioned by high level of human capital of its members. The study shows the decomposition components (trust, norms and values, and networks) that are parts of the social capital (the highest average value obtained dimension of norms and values, the lowest-network). Hypotheses concerning the relationship between LAG social capital and social activity, economic and sectoral cooperation were not confirmed by the test results. The article ends with recommendations for practitioners.