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Does social capital enforce social distancing? The role of bridging and bonding social capital in the evolution of the pandemic

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  • Vincenzo Alfano

    (Westminster International University in Tashkent
    Center for Economic Studies-CESifo)

Abstract

By shaping the way people look at members of their networks as well as strangers, social capital affects the behavior of a population during a pandemic. Over the course of 2020, various countries implemented non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPI), imposing restrictions that were difficult to enforce (due to the scale of the policies) in order to protect the public from the threat of COVID-19. This is an interesting quasi-experimental setting in which to test the compliance of populations with different levels of social capital with government suggestions and prescriptions. With the help of European Social Survey data, and the John Hopkins University dataset on the spread of COVID-19 around the world, the present work aims to test the impact within a sample of European countries with different social capital stocks on the spread of coronavirus. The results show that countries with higher social capital have fewer COVID-19 cases, ceteris paribus for NPI. This is especially true if this capital is of the bonding kind.

Suggested Citation

  • Vincenzo Alfano, 2022. "Does social capital enforce social distancing? The role of bridging and bonding social capital in the evolution of the pandemic," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 39(3), pages 839-859, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:epolit:v:39:y:2022:i:3:d:10.1007_s40888-021-00255-3
    DOI: 10.1007/s40888-021-00255-3
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    Cited by:

    1. Jong Hyun Jung & Kyung Won Choi & Harris Hyun-soo Kim, 2022. "Examining the Complex (Curvilinear and Contingent) Associations between Social Distancing Compliance and Subjective Health during a Global Health Crisis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(23), pages 1-15, November.
    2. Elisa Menardo & Marta Viola & Alice Bacherini & Luana Angelini & Roberto Cubelli & Giulia Balboni, 2023. "The Effects of the COVID-19-induced Lockdown on the Social Capital and Cultural Capital in Italy," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 168(1), pages 585-606, August.
    3. Vincenzo Alfano & Salvatore Ercolano, 2023. "Measuring Tight and Loose Cultures across NUTS-2 Regions: The Regional Index of Looseness," CESifo Working Paper Series 10731, CESifo.
    4. Alfano, Vincenzo, 2024. "Unlocking the importance of perceived governance: The impact on COVID-19 in NUTS-2 European regions," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 343(C).
    5. Călin Vâlsan & Zizi Goschin & Elena Druică, 2023. "The Measurement of Social Capital in America: A Reassessment," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 165(1), pages 135-161, January.
    6. Alfano, Vincenzo & Ercolano, Salvatore, 2023. "Fear itself. Is fear a determinant of the efficacy oflockdowns?," Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    7. Alfano, Vincenzo, 2023. "God or good health? Evidence on belief in God in relation to public health during a pandemic," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    8. Alfano, Vincenzo & Capasso, Salvatore & Ercolano, Salvatore & Goel, Rajeev K., 2022. "Death takes no bribes: Impact of perceived corruption on the effectiveness of non-pharmaceutical interventions at combating COVID-19," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 301(C).
    9. Elena Prodi & Stefano Ghinoi & Lauretta Rubini & Francesco Silvestri, 2023. "Do informal institutions matter for the economic resilience of European regions? A study of the post-2008 shock," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 40(1), pages 189-223, April.
    10. Alfano, Vincenzo & Ercolano, Salvatore, 2022. "Back to school or … back to lockdown? The effects of opening schools on the diffusion of COVID-19 in Italian regions," Socio-Economic Planning Sciences, Elsevier, vol. 82(PB).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Non pharmaceutical intervention; Social capital; Trust; COVID-19;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D62 - Microeconomics - - Welfare Economics - - - Externalities
    • H12 - Public Economics - - Structure and Scope of Government - - - Crisis Management
    • I18 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Government Policy; Regulation; Public Health

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