[k] key point jonathan trinidad, m.a., ph.d. candidate department of sociology new york state...

[k] Key Point

Jonathan Trinidad, M.A., Ph.D. CandidateDepartment of SociologyNew York State University at Buffalo

Michael Farrell, Ph.D., Department ChairDepartment of SociologyNew York State University at Buffalo

CDHSSocial Capital and Adolescent

DevelopmentParticipant Guide

© 2006-2007 CDHS/Research Foundation of SUNY/BSC College Relations Group

[k] Key Point

[1] Introduction • [2] Human capital • [3] Social capital • [4] Comparing human and social capital • [5] Adolescent development • [6] Research examples • [7] Case scenarios • [8] Cultural capital

≡ Table of Contents

Keeping it organized


1 Introduction

Getting started

[k] Key Point

Using this resource manual


♫Notes

Using this Resource ManualMore than one way

[k]Key Point

To maximize the utility of this presentation, what are some of the things you should keep in mind as you listen?


2 Human Capital

Knowledge and skills

[k] Key Point

Multiple forms of capital • Defining human capital • Alternative definitions of human capital • Measuring human capital • Comparing human capital • Moving on


♫Notes

Multiple Forms of CapitalDistinguishing between forms

[k]Key Point

The word, “capital,” is used repeatedly in current research. As Schuller

reports, “the list of different types of capital is growing fast: to natural, physical and financial capitals are added organizational, intellectual, environmental and many more.” Schuller (90)


[k]Key Point

In this handbook we distinguish between human and social capital.


♫Notes

Defining Human CapitalYou and the economy

[d]definition

Human capital is defied as, “the knowledge, skills, competences and

other attributes embodied in individuals that are relevant to economic activity.” Schuller (90)


♫Notes

Alternate Definitions of Human Capital

Because it helps to say it another way

[d]definition

There are many ways to define human capital. What follows is a collection of important citations. Some may make more sense to you than others.


♫Notes

Measuring Human CapitalHow much do I have?

[k]Key Point

The basic measure of human capital is years of schooling and qualifications achieved such as degrees and certifications. Schuller (2001:98)


☻Discussion

Comparing Human CapitalWho has it?

[k]Key Point

Human capital varies between individuals. Some people are more educated. Some people have better skills. Whether we know it or not, we frequently make judgments about others’ human capital. Consider the following Example.


?Question

You are the owner of corner store and are in need of a new cashier for the evening shift. The job involves

working alone. There are three applicants. Who do you hire? What factors do you consider?

Agatha is 16 and currently in high school. She is a C+ student and does not plan on attending college when

she graduates. If hired, this would be her first job.

Mark is 19 and sophomore in college. He is B- student majoring in business administration. Last summer he

worked as a stock boy for a local hardware store.

Jane is 26 and is in her final year of law school. She has an extensive résumé including several internships

at prestige law firms.


3 Social Capital

The network[k] Key Point

Defining social capital • A second definition of social capital • Alternative definitions of social capital • Building social capital • Mapping social capital • Measuring social capital • The importance of civic engagements • Why does social capital work? • Information flow • Illustrating information flow • Influence • Illustrating Influence • Social credentials • Illustrating social credentials • Reinforcing identity • Illustrating reinforcing identity


♫Notes

Defining Social CapitalAccording to Coleman

[d]Definition

Two definitions of social capital frequently appear in the research. The first definition was popularized by Coleman. According to Coleman,

social capital of the family is strength of the relationships between children and parents. Coleman (1988); Mitchell (1994:653); Qian & Blair (1999:606)


[d]Definition

“A child may have a talented and highly educated parent and thus be

genetically endowed with great potential…, but interactions with that parent are needed to convey encouragement and expectations…” Bianchi & Robinson (1997:333)


♫Notes

A Second Definition of Human Capital

According to Lin

[d]Definition

Social capital is also defined as, an investment in social relations with expected returns in the marketplace. Lin (2001:19)


♫Notes

Building Social CapitalThe marketplace

[k]Key Point

According to Lin, we build social capital by investing relationships for returns in the marketplace. But what exactly is the marketplace?

Traditionally, we think of it as economic sector, but the marketplace also includes the political, occupational and community sectors. Lin (2001:19)


☻ Discussion

Mapping Social CapitalReal examples of social capital

[k]Key Point

In the same way material resources travel between people, so too does social capital. As such, we can build a “road map” outlining the flow of

resources. The first step in mapping social capital is to know the members of your social network and the resources they provide. Lin (2001:20)


?Question

Make a list or a diagram mapping out your social network. What social relations are important to you? Why? What resources are made available because of your network? What resources do you provide in

your network?


♫Notes

Measuring Social CapitalHow much do I have?

[k]Key Point

Unlike human capital which is relatively easy to measure (i.e. years of

education, income), measuring social capital is more abstract. The most popular measurements include attitudes, values and civic engagements.


♫Notes

The Importance of Civic Engagements

Why social capital works

[k]Key Point

Social capital works because of civic engagements. Volunteer associations such as churches, block clubs, political parties, and special

interest groups increase the size and depth of one’s network which in turn increases one’s social capital.


♫Notes

Why Does Social Capital Work?Four reasons

[k]Key Point

Like economic capital, social capital improves the outcome of our

actions. Lin names four broad benefits of social capital which include information, influence, social credentials, and reinforcement.


♫Notes

Information FlowWhy social capital works: Reason 1

[k]Key Point

Social capital works because it facilitates the flow of information.

Being ideally located in a network makes you better informed to market needs.


?Question

To demonstrate information flow, describe a situation where you were granted information or an opportunity because of your social capital. In other

words, why was the opportunity available to you and not others?


☻ Discussion

Illustrating Information FlowHow does information travel?

[k]Key Point

It’s impossible for one person to know everything. Consequently,

individuals often use their networks to access missing information. “If I don’t know, I may know someone who does.”


♫Notes

InfluenceWhy social capital works: Reason 2

[k]Key Point

Social capital works when members of our network exert their influence on important actors for someone else’s benefit.


☻ Discussion

Illustrating InfluencePut in a good word for me

[k]Key Point

We all know what it’s like to have a friend exert their influence for our benefit. We all know what it’s like to exert our

influence for a friend’s benefit. Let’s talk about it.


?Question

Describe a situation when you used your good standing to help a friend. Or, describe a situation

when a friend used their good standing to help you.


♫Notes

Social CredentialsWhy social capital works: Reason 3

[k]Key Point

Social capital works because others are aware of your social credentials or your accessibility to resources through social networks. Others see you as a gatekeeper to specific resources.


☻ Discussion

Illustrating Social CredentialsI not only see you, I see what you can do for me

[k]Key Point

Social credentials is an abstract concept. To better understand how social capital relies on social credentials, let’s

consider how financial capital relies on financial credits. Time for an analogy.


?Question

What would happen if individuals failed to recognize paper money as a financial credit? How can we use this analogy to explain social credentials and social

capital?


♫ Notes

Reinforcing IdentityWhy social capital works: Reason 4

[k]Key Point

Social credentials is an abstract concept. To better understand how social capital relies on social credentials, let’s

consider how financial capital relies on financial credits. Time for an analogy.


☻ Discussion

Illustrating Reinforcing Identity

You are worthy

[k]Key Point

Doctors, by virtue of their profession, are entitled to a certain level of income. But what else are they entitled to? Let’s consider how identities merit not only financial capital, but also social capital.


?Question

Doctors and cashiers are both entitled to financial capital. The type and degree is determined by the

societal recognition of the identity. Doctors are held to higher esteem, thus they get paid more. Explain

why social capital differs between a doctor and cashier?

4 Comparing Human and Social

CapitalKey Differences

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The fundamental difference • What can you do for others • One versus many


♫ Notes

The Fundamental Difference

In simplest terms

[k]Key Point

The key difference between human and social capital is that human capital focuses on individual agents versus social capital which focuses on relationships between agents and the networks they form. Schuller (2001:97)


[k]

Key Point

The differences between human and social capital have been explained numerous ways. Some of the following references may make more sense to you than others.

[q] Quote

“In order to create well-being in children, financial and human capital

must be accompanied by social relationships that allow resources to be transmitted to and used by children.” Teachman et al. (1997:1356)


☻ Discussion

What Can You Do For Others?

A simple illustration

[k]Key Point

Schuller sums it best when he states, “individuals and their human capital are not discrete entities that exist separately form the rest of other social units.” Schuller (98)


?Question

Bob is a doctor. What is Bob’s human capital? Explain how his human capital can be social capital

to his friends.


☻ Discussion

One Versus ManyStrength in numbers

[k]Key Point

Another way to illustrate the difference between human and social

capital is by comparing the resources of one versus the resources of many. Often times, a group of people can complete a task better and more efficient than one person alone.


?Question

Describe a time when a team of people were able to accomplish a goal no one person could do alone.

What kind of resources did you provide to the team? What kind of resources did your co-workers provide? Explain in your own words how this is an example of

social capital.


5 Adolescent Development

How does social capital enhance the young adult transition?

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The young adult transition • The rise of the young adult transition • Not all transitions are equal • Rates of success • Social capital and the transition


♫Notes

The Young Adult TransitionMoving beyond adolescence

[k]Key Point

The period of life between adolescence and adulthood has often been

referred to as the young adult transition. It is a particularly volatile time for development whereby individuals learn to balance freedom and responsibility.


♫Notes

The Rise of the Young Adult Transition

The basics

[k]Key Point

As was described earlier, the period of life between adolescence and adulthood has often been referred to as the Young Adult Transition.

Let’s consider how this transitional stage developed.


[k]Key Point

Cumulatively, these factors – Continued education, non-family living, and delay of marriage and childbirth – result in a prolonged period of transition from child to adult.


☻ Discussion

Not All Transitions Are EqualWhat makes for a successful transition into adulthood?

[k]Key Point

The young adult transition is a difficult period of life for all adolescents,

but not all adolescents experience the same degree of difficulty. What makes the transition easier or more difficult for some?


?Question

From your experiences in the field, what factors make the adolescent experience more difficult?

What factors make it easier? Are there any variables that are a good indicator of how difficult the

transition will be? For example, how do family income and/or size affect adolescent development?


♫Notes

Rates of SuccessSuccessful transition varies by race

[k]Key Point

Research suggests the ease and success of the young adult transition varies by race and ethnicity. Hardships during adolescent development may account for future socio-economic status discrepancies along racial and ethnic lines as young people transition into paid work.


[k]Key Point

Demographic research done in the last decade and a half indicates that

African Americans are more likely than whites to come through the young adult transition in ways that can negatively impact later life development.


♫Notes

Social Capital and the TransitionEnhancing the transition

[k]Key Point

To explain the racial and ethnic differences in the young adult transition, some scholars have pointed to social capital. Social capital, it is argued, can affect the timing and preparedness of adolescents transitioning into adulthood.


6 Research Examples

What do the experts say?

[k] Key Point

Social capital varies by race • Social capital is lower in single parent homes • The impact of low parental social capital on children • Success despite low human and financial capital • Community as social capital


♫Notes

(1) Social Capital Varies by RaceMinorities are at a disadvantage

[k]Key Point

Social capital is not equal between races. Most research indicates blacks have lower social capital than whites. This discrepancy has profound impacts on black children undergoing the young adult transition.


[q]Quote

Social capital is related to socio-economic status. To the extent that blacks have lower socio-economic status than do whites, they are likely to have less social capital, resulting in fewer educational advantages.” Hallinan (2001:56)


♫Notes

(2) Social Capital is Lower in Single-Parent Homes

Two parents are better than one

[k]Key Point

Research shows social capital is higher for children who live with both

parents. Reason being, children can benefit from two social networks versus one.


[k]Key Point

The structure of the family has been argued as a form of social capital. As a form of social capital, family structure can influence the rate of high-risk, early home-leaving.

[q]Quote

“This relation between family structure and achievement has profound

consequences for the racial gap, since black students are nearly twice as likely as white students to live in nontraditional households.” Roscigno

(1999:158)


♫Notes

(3) The Impact of Low Parental Social Capital on Children

When parents can’t provide

[k]Key Point

Children are the beneficiaries of their parent’s social capital. When parents have high social capital, those resources can be passed along to their children. Conversely, when parents have low social capital, children are often deprived of important resources.


[k]Key Point

Baker and Stevenson illustrate the importance of social capital. Although economic capital does play an important role in a child’s academic success, a parent’s ability to be informed and integrated in the school system is also important.


[q]Quote

“The most cruel aspect of discrimination and disadvantage lies in the ability to deprive the individual of that competence which is essential to effective functioning once the formal barriers to free competition have been breached.” Inkeles (1966:65)

[k]Key Point

Again, the lack of parent’s social capital has a profound impact on children’s development, especially in the school environment.


[q]Quote

“One of the main consequences of a lack of social capital is a tendency to drop out of high school at an early age.” Mitchell (1994:653)


♫Notes

(4) Success Despite Low Human and Financial Capital

The significant impact of social capital

[k]Key Point

Parental human and financial capital are important factors affecting children’s educational performance. However, “when human and

financial capital are insufficient, high expectations for minorities may be achieved through social capital.” Qian & Blair (1999:607)


[q]Quote

“It is likely that African-American and Hispanic parents who encourage their children to move ahead give enough attention to their children

despite the deficiency of human and financial capital. It is one of the cultural strategies that minorities design to increase their children’s school success.” Qian & Blair (1999:622)


♫Notes

(5) Community as Social CapitalOutside Support

[k]Key Point

Good news. “Social capital outside of the family can compensate, at least in part, for a lack of social capital within the family.” Mitchell (1994:666)


7 Case Scenarios Applying what you have learned

[k] Key Point

Agatha • Noah • Ursula


☻ Discussion

AgathaAt 16 she wants move out and have her own child

[k]Key Point

Agatha is 16 years old and wants to begin working in the “real world.” Although she is intelligent and has the potential to excel in school, her grades are mediocre, mostly due to poor attendance and lack of

motivation. Agatha can’t understand the point of an education and would rather drop out and begin working full time.


[k] Key Point

Agatha is the oldest of four children and lives with her mom in a low

income community. Her mother is on welfare and rarely leaves the house. She has never met her father or any other members of her extended family.

[k]Key Point

Ultimately, Agatha is eager to be independent and knows she wants to become a mother but not a wife. She believes finding a part-time job will be the first step towards becoming an adult.


?Question

What resources are unavailable to Agatha because of her poor social network? How is her mom’s

withdrawal from the world hurting Agatha?


☻ Discussion

NoahHis parents are upstanding citizens who are never home

[k]Key Point

Noah is 13 years old and not doing well in school despite having a personal tutor and being enrolled in several after-school booster

classes. He understands the material but does not care about it. “What good is it to me? I don’t need anyone’s help.”


[k]Key Point

His school counselors believe Noah might have a learning disability.

He’s been tested several times, but the results always come back negative. Noah is fine.


[k]

Key Point

Noah’s parents are both college educated and are well respected in the community. The father is a county lawyer and the mother is a surgeon at the local hospital. Both work full time so money is not an issue, hence the personal tutor and after-school classes. “We can’t always be there for Noah, so we provide him with the best alternatives

He has everything he could ever need or want available to him.”

[k] Key Point

Noah is an only child and is anti-social at school.


?Question

What resources are available to Noah? What resources are unavailable? What factors are detrimental to Noah’s development? Why?


☻ Discussion

UrsulaShe has no money but could care less

[k]Key Point

Ursula is 17 years old and is the fourth child of six in her family.

Because her family is so big, money is always tight.


[k]Key Point

Her mother died before Ursula became a teenager and her father works two full-time jobs to make ends meet. He’s a plumber and cab driver.

As a result, Ursula was raised by her brothers and sisters, and aunts and uncles. “We live paycheck to paycheck so my family has learned to be there for each other. I have a big extended family and we always manage to make things work… somehow.”


[k]

Key Point

Academically, Ursula is a B- student. She studies when she has to, but is more interested in learning from her family. “My family teaches me things I don’t learn in school like how cook or how to speak to a boss. Those kinds of things.”


[k] Key Point

Ursula’s school counselors like her very much because she’s very polite and can carry an entertaining conversation forever. However, they’re worried Ursula isn’t serious enough about going to college. “They don’t think I have enough money or book smarts to get accepted. But I’m not worried. I’m friends with all my teachers and they’re willing to write me excellent references letters. Plus, one of my aunts has already been talking to her boss about hiring me. If I don’t get into college, I’ll work with my aunt.”


?Question

Identify the human, financial, and social capital at work in Ursula’s life. What are her weakest

resources? Strongest?


8 Cultural Capital

Further Considerations

[k] Key Point

Cultural capital • Who would you hire • Low cultural capital


♫Notes

Cultural CapitalOn a side note

[k]Key Point

Cultural capital is a separate but important form of capital. It refers to,

“the credentials and cultural assets embodied in individuals and their families. It is used to explain the reproduction of social hierarchy, as elite families endow their children with the cultural capital which enables them to succeed in maintaining their elite position.” Schuller (2001:91).


☻ Discussion

Who Would You Hire?Cultural Capital in Action

[k]Key Point

Cultural capital is more of an academic notion, but it is easily understood in the following scenario.


?Question

Two applicants with the comparable experience and qualifications are interested in the same job. The

first applicant, however, correctly identified the wall hanging in the office. “It’s by Monet.” He also

complimented the boss’s, “British cut,” suit and talked about a theater show they had both recently

seen. The second applicant, though equally qualified, could not find a common point for

discussion.

Although there is no real difference in their abilities, why is the first candidate at an advantage?


♫Notes

Low Cultural CapitalKeep it within the circle

[k]Key Point

As the argument goes, minorities and females are at a disadvantage because they lack cultural capital. Although they may be equally

qualified as their white, male counterparts, they are often overlooked because they don’t know the code.


[end]Finished


[k] key point jonathan trinidad, m.a., ph.d. candidate department of sociology new york state...

Documents

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human capital knowledge

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buffalo cdhs social

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schuller reports

resource manual

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