Social capital and economic integration of migrants in urban China

Based on data from a 2005 survey conducted in Shanghai, China, this research examines the role of social capital in income inequality between rural migrants and urbanites. We find strong income return on social capital, in particular on social capital from strong ties. We also observe a great disparity in social capital possession between rural migrants and urban local residents. Although social capital from strong ties seems to be more important for rural migrants than for urbanites, local ties and high-status ties do not seem to benefit rural migrants. Hence, migrants not only suffer severe social capital deficits but also capital return deficits. Given the strong income returns on social capital and the substantial differences in access to and return on social capital between migrants and urban residents, social capital is consequently found to explain a large part of the income inequality between the two groups. Overall, our findings reveal macro-structural effects on the role of social capital in labor market stratification. In China, the lack of formal labor market mechanisms continues to create both a strong need for and opportunities for economic actions to be organized around informal channels via social relations. Yet, the long-standing institutional exclusion of migrants caused by the household registration system has resulted in pervasive social exclusion and discrimination which have substantially limited rural migrants’ accumulation and mobilization of social capital. Under these conditions, social capital reinforces the economic inequality between migrants and urban residents in China. Such empirical evidence adds to our understanding of the role of social capital in the economic integration of migrants and in shaping intergroup inequality in general.     

Strong Ties,Weak Ties,and Human Capital: Latino Immigrant Employment Outside the Enclave*

Abstract This study focuses on the role of social ties and human capital in the integration of Latino immigrants into the local economy. This analysis extends earlier research by focusing on more rural contexts with limited labor‐market opportunities and less access to social resources provided by coethnics. We reconsider conclusions of previous studies by focusing on areas with limited labor‐market opportunities and less access to resources provided by coethnics. Using data from in‐depth interviews, focus‐group discussions, and surveys of former farmworkers in five rural communities in New York, we consider how individuals move from agricultural to other types of employment. Multinomial logit and ordinary least squares regression analyses confirm indications from our qualitative data that strong social ties, weak ties, and human capital all play distinctive parts in the economic integration of immigrants outside the ethnic enclave. These resources have the most positive impact on incomes when they contribute to the immigrants' self‐reliance in finding employment. This finding is consistent with observations from the social‐network literature that those who are less reliant on strong social ties are better able to take advantage of a broader range of labor‐market opportunities.     

Place of Origin,Types of Ties,and Support Networks in Mexico–U.S. Migration*

Previous studies explored how urban or rural place of origin influences the source of social capital. There remains a need to consider how the place of origin affects the type of ties—family, friends, or paisanos (countrymen)—with those who provide support to migrants. We use data from the Mexican Migration Project (MMP128) and perform multinomial logistic regression models to predict who (among family, friends, or paisanos) provides lodging to first‐time undocumented male migrants from Mexico, taking into account the size of their place of origin. We find that paisanos are important in providing lodging to those from rural areas, and family members are more likely to assist those from urban settings. Paisanos are more likely to help at the beginning of the migratory flow of the community (rural or urban), and family members to do so once the flow has matured. Also, paisanos are more likely to help those in rural areas during more difficult times, such as after the enactment of the North American Free Trade Agreement. We suggest that paisanos fulfill a role similar to that in Granovetter's (1973) concept of the strength of weak ties in which they act as substitutes for other ties (such as to friends and family) to provide social capital, making the first‐time undocumented migration possible.     

MOBILIZING SOCIAL RESOURCES: Race, Ethnic, and Gender Differences in Social Capital and Persisting Wage Inequalities

Drawing on a social capital theoretical framework, I examine race, ethnic, and gender wage inequalities. Specifically, I extend past research by analyzing differences in the mobilization of different types of job contacts, what these types of contacts and their level of influence "buy" job seekers in the labor market, and the extent to which differences in social resources explain between-group variations in wages. Four aspects of job contacts are implicated: the race and gender of the job contact, the strength of the relationship between the job seeker and the job contact, and the job contact's influence. Employing the Multi-City Study of Urban Inequality, I find that white men are more likely to mobilize weak, white, male, and influential contacts, those contacts hypothesized to positively impact employment outcomes. Moreover, their greater mobilization of male and influential ties helps to explain a substantial part of their wage advantage over white women and Lations. However, in many ways, their overall social resource advantage seems somewhat overstated. They reap no advantages over blacks, Latinos, and white women in their use of weak and white ties. Furthermore, results indicate that the benefits of social resources appear largely contingent on the social structural location of job seekers mobilizing them, less on any benefits inherent in different "types" of job contacts.     

Social Capital and Livelihoods in Johannesburg: Differential Advantages and Unexpected Outcomes among Foreign‐Born Migrants,Internal Migrants,and Long‐Term South African Residents

Foreign‐born migrants – a group rarely compared with both internal migrants and long‐term residents – are often positioned as the most disadvantaged South African urban population. We use data from a 2008 cross‐sectional household survey conducted in Johannesburg to compare a contextually relevant measure of social capital and livelihood advantages between foreign‐born migrants, internal migrants, and long‐term South African residents. Our findings are counterintuitive and emphasize the need to explore the heterogeneity of urban migrant populations, and the mechanisms in which they better their lives, by showing that (1) foreign‐born migrants have better urban livelihood outcomes, and (2) indicators of social capital are not necessarily associated with improved livelihood outcomes.     

Job-search Networks and Wage Attainment in China: A Comparison of Job Changers and Non-changers

This article examines job-search networks and entry-level wage attainment using data from a large-scale survey conducted in eight cities in China in 2009. Two key issues are addressed: (i) how the use of social networks is associated with entry-level wage attainment in urban China, and (ii) whether the patterns of network effects on entry-level wage differ between job changers and first-job seekers. The results show that both strength of ties and social resources of job-search networks are significantly associated with entry-level wage attainment, and that the network effects on entry-level wage are greater for job changers than for first-job seekers. This study offers a solid empirical verification of the associations of weak ties with information and strong ties with influence in an analysis of entry-level wages for job changers and first-job seekers.     

Environmental Controversies,Interactional Resources,and Rural Communities: Siting Versus Exposure Disputes1

Abstract Differences in the types of social conflict occuring in facility siting disputes and toxic contamination cases are compared. An ecological-symbolic perspective and the concept of strong and weak ties are used to interpret the nature of social conflict in two rural Pennsylvania communities and in cases in the literature. Overall, community solidarity appears likely to be enhanced in siting disputes and undermined in exposure situations. To explain this, two conflict paths are developed that move from the presence or absence of the hazard agent to individual perceptions, the generation of collective threat beliefs and the formation of strong ties, the emergence of alternative leadership and its relationship to official authorities, and finally the formation of weak ties. In each case, the type of community conflict results from the nature of the perceived environmental threat and the social process that threat sets in motion. Practical implications for rural community development are discussed.     

Strong or weak ties? British and Indian expatriate scientists finding jobs in Boston

In this article I analyse the different social networks that British and Indian scientists use to obtain job information in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sector around Boston, Massachusetts. I argue that individuals' social networks are critical in helping highly skilled migrants find jobs. The research finds that British and Indian scientists use both strong and weak ties to obtain jobs and there is no significant difference between senior and junior workers in terms of whether they relied on strong or weak ties. I argue, nonetheless, that the terms strong ties and weak ties are problematic because they are not clearly understood or mutually exclusive.     

Neighborhood disadvantage, network social capital, and depressive symptoms

Research on why neighborhood disadvantage matters for health focuses on the capacity of neighborhoods to regulate residents' behavior through informal social control. The authors extend this research by conducting a multilevel analysis of data from a 1995 telephone survey of 497 residents of 32 neighborhoods in a U.S. city. The authors find that network social capital mediates the contextual effect of neighborhood disadvantage on depressive symptoms and that health effects of network social capital persist when perceived neighborhood disorder, a standard indicator of low informal social control, is controlled for. The findings demonstrate the value of a conceptualization and measurement of network social capital that (1) considers ties that transcend neighborhood boundaries, (2) investigates health benefits of network social capital in the forms of closure and embedded support resources and range and embedded instrumental resources, and (3) uses network data on specific network members with strong and weak ties to respondents.     

家庭社会资本对大学生农村就业意愿的影响

家庭是影响大学生农村就业的一个重要因素,因而家庭社会资本与大学生农村就业行为有密切的关系。家庭社会资本对大学生去农村的就业意愿、最低工资价位和职业选择的影响显著。母亲的受教育程度、家庭年收入越高,大学生去农村的就业意愿越高,大学生去农村的最低心理工资价位越高;父母的受教育程度越高,大学生去农村更愿意选择从政。     

Soziale Kontakte als weg aus der Erwerbslosigkeit

When the usefulness of social ties for the improvement of an individual’s labour market position is analysed, the unemployed are hardly ever considered. In this article it is shown how Granovetter’s “strength of weak ties”-theory (1973) can be modified to examine the likelihood of labour market entry of initially unemployed people with low incomes. Using longitudinal data of the German lowincome- panel (“Niedrigeinkommens-Panel”) 1998–2002, it is found that almost one third of the formerly unemployed respondents got their new job through social contacts. Event History Analyses show that a) the more strong social ties jobless have and b) the more heterogeneous their relationships are, the higher the probability that they find a job within the observed period. The significant positive effects of social network features also hold when well-known predictors for labour market performance such as duration of unemployment, health, education, gender, age and support by public employment services are controlled for.     

Social Capital and Participation in Community Improvement Activities by Elderly Residents in Small Towns and Rural Communities*

Abstract This study critically reviews theoretical concepts and measurements of social capital and tests hypotheses that elaborate how four dimensions of social capital (informal social ties, formal social ties, trust, and norms of collective action) and sense of community are related to participation in community improvement activities for elderly residents in small towns and rural communities. Mail surveys of 2,802 elders in 99 small towns and rural communities in Iowa reveal that many elders are actively involved in their community. Social capital and sense of community are very important in predicting elderly participation in community improvement activities, but they relate differently to elderly community involvement. Formal ties and sense of community have much stronger relationships with community involvement than informal ties and norms of collective action. Generalized trust is not significantly related to elderly community involvement.     

Post‐Socialist Restructuring and Population Redistribution in Hungary*

Abstract This research focuses on pathways by which national level macro‐social transformations are transmitted to local communities. Our case is Hungary where we examine the relationship between post‐socialist economic restructuring, widespread industrial dislocations, and urban‐rural migration. Using secondary data from the Hungarian Central Statistical Office (KSH) and survey data from a study of 49 villages in 4 distinct rural regions, we demonstrate that post‐socialist population deconcentration involved both suburbanization and net movement to villages, especially villages that are located relatively close to cities. Contrary to our expectations, movement to villages was from nearby settlements, not from large industrial centers. Moreover, migrants to villages were substantially better off than longer term village residents in terms of their human capital and attachment to the labor force. Consequently, post‐socialist population deconcentration is not contributing to rural poverty as feared by some scholars.     

Social Stigma, Social Capital Reconstruction and Rural Migrants in Urban China: A Population Health Perspective

In this study, we examine migrant stigma and its effect on social capital reconstruction among rural migrants who possess legal rural residence but live and work in urban China. After a review of the concepts of stigma and social capital, we report data collected through in-depth interviews with 40 rural migrant workers and 38 urban residents recruited from Beijing, China. Findings from this study indicate that social stigma against rural migrants is common in urban China and is reinforced through media, social institutions and their representatives, and day-to-day interactions. As an important part of discrimination, stigma against migrant workers creates inequality, undermines trust, and reduces opportunities for interpersonal interactions between migrants and urban residents. Through these social processes, social stigma interferes with the reconstruction of social capital (including bonding, bridging and linking social capital) for individual rural migrants as well as for their communities. The interaction between stigma and social capital reconstruction may present as a mechanism by which migration leads to negative health consequences. Results from this study underscore the need for taking measures against migrant stigma and alternatively work toward social capital reconstruction for health promotion and disease prevention among this population.     

Regional disparities in bonding and bridging social capital: An empirical study of rural and urban Japan

This article investigates regional social capital development by focusing on disparities in bonding and bridging social capital among rural and urban areas of Japan. Rural–urban differences in social capital in Western contexts have been discussed by many studies. Their main finding is that bonding social capital is richer in rural areas and bridging social capital is richer in urban areas. However, the empirical evidence presented in this article suggests that in Japan both bridging and bonding social capital are richer in rural than urban areas, diverging from traditional thinking about these two types of social capital. This finding suggests that urbanization and depopulation in rural areas of Japan have led to changes in people's behavior and their demand for social networks, promoting the development of bridging social capital in rural areas.     

The Social Bases of Rural‐Urban Political Divides: Social Status,Work, and Sociocultural Beliefs

The rural‐urban political divide has sparked media and social science concern. Yet national studies of rural and urban voters have largely failed to draw from the distinct conceptual literatures produced by rural sociologists. We take a new look at individuals’ voting choices, building from two rural sociological literatures, research on spatial inequality and on the rural‐urban continuum, to identify the social bases anteceding Republican voting in presidential elections. We analyze three social bases along which rural‐urban populations vary: social structural statuses, work and employment, and sociocultural values and beliefs. We question the degree to which rural‐urban differences can be accounted for by these factors. Data are from approximately 9,000 respondents to the General Social Surveys for election years 2000–2012. Our findings demonstrate that the literatures produced by rural sociologists provide a strong conceptual foundation for explaining rural‐urban voting differences. Rural and urban residents’ differential social statuses account for the greatest variation in their voting choices. Sociocultural values and beliefs, particularly attitudes toward domestic social issues, are also important. Findings add significant insight into the variety of factors that differentiate rural‐urban individuals’ voting choices as well as illuminate the need for greater emphasis on exurban voters.     

Ask Not What Your Mentor Can Do for You…: The Role of Reciprocal Exchange in Maintaining Student–Teacher Mentorships

Mentoring relationships between adolescents and adults are an important source of social capital that facilitates young people's academic and social development. Studies show that close relationships with teachers especially benefit socioeconomically disadvantaged adolescents, yet little is known about teacher‐mentors’ perspectives on mentorship. This study draws on in‐depth interviews with teachers in low‐income high schools and ethnographic observations to examine the dynamics that sustain student–teacher mentoring relationships. I engage social exchange frameworks to show that reciprocal exchanges that generated intangible rewards for teachers, such as gratitude and purpose, helped maintain mentorships. I find that teachers’ motivations to invest in students were contingent on the strength of the relationship. Teachers withdrew assistance when they perceived that relationships became nonreciprocal. The context in which teachers interacted with mentees and the form of support they had given also influenced their evaluations of reciprocity. These findings contribute to a growing body of literature on relationships that challenge strict divisions between the function of strong and weak ties. Further, these findings contribute to social capital literature by showing that once accessed, social capital does not lie latent as network ties maintain the same willingness to help. In actuality, resourceful ties must be maintained.     

A Study of Individual‐Level Social Capital and Health Outcomes: Testing for Variance between Rural and Urban Respondents

This study examines associations between social capital and health outcomes with data from the 2010 Brazos Valley Health Survey (Texas) (N = 3,176). Multivariate adjusted logistic regression analysis demonstrated that poor and fair health status was inversely predicted by both high trust (adjusted OR = .67 [CI = .50–.92]) and high informal social ties (adjusted OR = .68 [CI = .49–.94]), as well as being predicted by the interaction of urban‐rural and community participation (adjusted OR = 1.20 [CI = 1.02–1.40]). Mental distress was inversely predicted by high trust (adjusted OR = .51 [CI = .29–.89]) and the interaction of urban/rural and informal social ties (adjusted OR = .77 [CI = .61–.97]). Thus, whereas social capital poses general benefits in regard to improving health status and mental distress, the former benefits are greater for rural respondents, while the latter benefits are greater for urban respondents.     

Community Connections: Social Capital and Community Success1

This article examines the impact of two types of community social capital—ties between civic organizations formed through shared members and ties between residents formed through socializing in local gathering places—on residents’ subjective appraisals of community success. Community social capital studies tend to focus on the first of these types of ties, networks of civic engagement, while the second, gathering place networks, has received relatively little scholarly attention. Studying both allows me to assess the formal and informal arenas of community sociability, providing a more thorough understanding of social capital and community life. I assess the effects of community‐level social capital networks on the individual‐level experience of residing in the community using survey data on 9,962 residents from 99 small towns in Iowa. This rich data set allows me to avoid two shortcomings common in social capital research: I construct genuine network measures of social capital (rather than infer network structure from community attributes) and conduct multi‐level analyses (rather than rely on disaggregation). My findings indicate both types of social capital are positively and significantly associated with resident ratings of community success, suggesting community networks—in both the formal and informal sectors—have important consequences for small towns and their residents.     

The Role of Social Networks in Getting a Job

This article reviews recent research on the effect s of social networks on access to job information and getting a job in the United States. Drawing on network ties from friends, family members, acquaintances, employers, or coworkers can improve the job search because individuals gain access to and make use of their network’s social capital. While this job searching strategy can result in a successful job search for some, not all job seekers benefit from reliance on social networks. We spotlight research that documents how reliance on social networks as a means to find work can actually maintain sex and racial/ethnic inequality at work. We discuss research documenting the important role social networks play in the job acquisition process. The last half of this review focuses on several new developments in the literature that promise to further our understanding of social networks’ lasting effects on employment outcomes.