Whodunit?

Photo credit: FreeImages.com/Bud Adams/Gustavo Bueso Padgett

In the last blog posting, we reflected on how much investment we are making in social capital in our own lives. In my case, it doesn’t feel like a whole lot because of everything else that is already going on. And, if that’s the case for you, too, we’re not alone.

In Section III of his book, Putnam explores the reasons for the remarkable decline in social capital within the United States in the last third of the 20th century. Like a good detective, he explores several possible “suspects.” These possible drivers of the decline in social capital investment include an increase in being busy, anxiety over financial pressure, increases in the number of women in the workforce, living in metropolitan areas, suburban sprawl, increased commuting time, electronic technology and the mass media (especially television), and generational changes.

Putnam is able to dismiss some possible drivers (such as personal mobility) as having made no recognizable contribution to the decline in social capital. So, some “likely suspects” are clearly exonerated of the crime. Putnam’s analysis is able to point to some significant factors which have contributed to the decline, however. Family financial pressure (including the unique situation of two-earner families) has played a role. Suburban sprawl and the accompanying commutes have also played a noticeable role. More significantly, the privatization of entertainment, particularly through television, has been a substantial influence in the decline of social capital. Most importantly, generational transitions have had the biggest influence – what Putnam (2000) refers to as “the slow, steady, and ineluctable replacement of the long civic generation by their less involved children and grandchildren” (p. 283).

Putnam acknowledges that the overall situation is complex, and that there are probably additional unknown factors which have contributed to the decline. Nevertheless, his analysis has yielded helpful clues as to the “what” and “why” of social capital decline in America.