Social Capital : A Perspective on Indonesian Society

In various aspects of life, social capital is closely related to people’s activities. Many examples could be taken to emphasize the theory and implement it to create a better situation.

Social capital could be defined as the types of relations that exist between individuals located within both families and communities and that are said to exert a strong influence on levels of educational achievement (Scott and Marshall 2005:606). This term was first appearing in 1916 by L.J. Hanifan during his observation and research in rural communities in the United States, specifically, on how neighbors could work together to oversee schools. It was then referred to as “those tangible assets [that] count for most in the daily lives of people: namely goodwill, fellowship, sympathy, and social intercourse among the individuals and families who make up a social unit”. The word ‘capital’, emphasizes that social capital, like human capital or financial capital, is productive: It enables us to create value, get things done, achieve our goals, fulfill our missions in life, and make our contributions to the world (Baker 2000:02).

Indonesia, where its culture is closely related to heavy social interactions would be a good example of how this social capital concept occurred and evolved. The habit of mutual assistance in communities called ‘Gotong royong’ is defined as where cooperation is made to assist each other in the field of security, e.g.?Sistem keamanan keliling (siskamling), cleaning the environment, moving from one house to another, etc.

OECD Insights regarding Human Capital shows varieties of social capital, with a fairly straightforward approach that divides it into three main categories:

• Bonds: Links to people based on a sense of common identity (“people like us”) – such as family, close friends, and people who share our culture or ethnicity.
• Bridges: Links that stretch beyond a shared sense of identity, for example to distant friends, colleagues, and associates.
• Linkages: Links to people or groups further up or lower down the social ladder.

Saguaro seminar at John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University has elaborated more on whom Social capital works through multiple channels, such as:

• Information flows (e.g. learning about jobs, learning about candidates running for office, exchanging ideas at college, etc.) depend on social capital.
• Norms of reciprocity (mutual aid) rely on social networks. Bonding networks that connect folks who are similar sustain particularized (in-group) reciprocity. Bridging networks that connect individuals who are diverse sustain generalized reciprocity.
• Collective action depends upon social networks (e.g. the role that the black church played in the Civil Rights movement), although collective action also can foster new networks.
• Broader identities and solidarity are encouraged by social networks that help translate an “I” mentality into a “we” mentality.

However, recent developments indicate that there is a decline in social capital in developing countries, especially in big cities, where people tend to be individual and too tired to do their working daily activities. One of the biggest factors is traffic jams which consume more time, energy that lead to more stress and exhaustion. Deficiencies in social capital – such as would follow from single-parenthood, decreased parental involvement with the child or with family activities, and low levels of interaction between adults and especially parents in local communities – were detrimental to development in adolescence. (Scott and Marshall 2005:606). Another affecting factor is that people feel they have already paid services fees and/or already established a division/institution to address specific problems, which generally do not exist in rural areas and small towns.

Yet, many people notice interesting phenomena that occurred recently in Indonesia, such as demonstrations, sports events, fundraising, distribution of aid, etc. These examples both happened in social media and also physical activities where social capital seemed to appear instantly and in a quite massive amount. Based on field observations and interviews, many of the participants took the initiative to share the chain information and gather voluntarily from various regions while also carrying out their actions by taking into account the social aspects of local communities in the designated location and the necessity of each participant, such as order, cleanliness, religious needs, etc. Apart from the related matters that sparked the activities, this example is related to the concept of trust, norms, and networks, which can improve the efficiency of society by facilitating coordinated actions (Putnam 1993:167). It widens the concept, emphasizing the importance of people’s involvement in informal activities and voluntarily participating or being part of voluntary associations, this also shows the importance of ‘Bridging’ capital. Positively, there is evidence that social capital is not entirely lost and could be used and grown if there is a trigger and consolidation from a good management system.

However, we also need to be aware of and consider several negative effects of social capital which could happen. It includes social exclusion to as many groups resulting from internal cohesion at the expense of outsiders, who can be treated with suspicion, hostility, or outright hatred (Walker 2004).

There are opportunities and positive values that could be utilized to solve problems in Indonesia which require a massive and collective approach in the society such as the governments and the communities. Such cases are corruption, natural disasters, poverty, poor education, etc. Hopefully, the enlightening and the raising of awareness could become a catalyst for channeling positive energy among people.

“The environment is where we all meet; where all have a mutual interest; it is the one thing all of us share.” –?Claudia Alta ‘Lady Bird’ Johnson,?First Lady of the 36th?US President

Author: Muhammad Dhafi Iskandar

International Indonesian Scholars Association (I-4) Executive Member

Alumnus of Master of Management Strategique International (Paris Ouest Nanterre Université)

Source: https://i-4.or.id/en/social-capital-a-perspective-on-indonesian-society/