The value of human and social capital

This paper presents a skeptical view of the utility of the term 'social capital'. It reviews several different uses of the term and discusses the difficulty of quantifying it given the wide number of abstract variables it covers.

Several definitions:
world bank:
"social capital refers to the institutions, relationships, and norms that shape the
quality and quantity of a society’s social interactions . . . Social capital is not just the sum of the institutions which underpin a society – it is the glue that holds them together."

Putnam:
"the features of social life – networks, norms and trust – that enable participants to act together more effectively to pursue shared objectives."

This all brings to mind the question of how ubiquitous mobile access to social networking services will affect human and social capital...

Social and Human Capital: The Search for Appropriate Technomethodology, 2000
Tom Schuller
[Full-text pdf]