Rethinking Social Capital

Carl L. Bankston III, Professor of Sociology, Department of Sociology, School of Liberal Arts, Tulane University, US

• Contents: Introduction: the project of Rethinking Social Capital PART I CLARIFYING SOCIAL CAPITAL THEORY 1. What is “social capital”? 2. How does social capital work? 3. Theoretical problems and complications 4. Social capital and social structure PART II APPLICATIONS OF SOCIAL CAPITAL THEORY 5. Families, communities, and education 6. Formal organizations and informal networks 7. Class, race, ethnicity, and inequality 8. Social capital and the nation-state Conclusion: social capital rethought References Index

‘Rethinking Social Capital demystifies the idea of social capital and clarifies the various ways in which the term is used. Bankston thoughtfully and critically brings the disparate theoretical elements into a coherent model and applies it to investigating how social categories serve as historical sources of social networks and how different forms of networks within categories sustain social stratification. The book is beautifully written, and the narrative is captivating and engaging, offering a nuanced approach to understanding the roots of socioeconomic, racial, and ethnic inequality, as well as the contributions and limits of social capital theory.’