Social Capital as a Predictor of Quality of Life: The Czech Experience

Abstract

In the paper, we understand social capital as a variable that affects the quality of life. A variable whose change affects another variable is called a predictor. The paper is based on Putnam’s understanding of social capital with the dimensions of trust, norms and networks. Trust is considered the most important dimension, and for the purposes of the paper social capital is identified with trust. Quality of life is a holistic concept with two dimensions expressing an assessment of satisfaction with life. After society became richer—in the 1960’s in the West and, after the collapse of the bipolar world, also in Central and Eastern Europe—the need for quantity was replaced by the need for quality. The paper is focused on Czechia, with social capital as a predictor of quality of life being investigated geographically at the level of districts. According to the research hypothesis, social capital will have a strong influence on the quality of life of residents in Czechia, i.e., it will be its predictor. To test the validity of the research hypothesis, research was conducted. The aim of the paper is to outline the epistemology of social capital from the aspect of quality of life, description of quality of life and then to test the validity of the research hypothesis by measurements. The result of the quantification of social capital and quality of life at the level of districts and their correlation is important from an epistemological point of view for two reasons. The first is to question the generally accepted premise of the position of social capital as a strong predictor of quality of life. The second is the recognition that the premise of the position of social capital as a strong predictor of quality of life applies in the districts with the highest quality of life.

Is the Size of the City Important for the Quality of Urban Life? Comparison of a Small and a Large City

“…However, the measurement of the correlations between them shows a very small correlation [24]. This non-confirmation of the expected result is not isolated [13]; the authors report low correlation values between quality of life and social capital, which is generally considered a strong predictor of quality of life, in Czechia. For that reason, the findings of our article should be considered as a stone in the mosaic of complexity and multidimensionality that is the concept of quality of life, not as an indisputable statement.…”

“…Slovak authors deal with the quality of life in Slovakia [10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17]. Russian authors examine the quality of life in Russia [18][19][20].…”

“…According to ref. [13] "Quality of life is one of the concepts by which late modern society tries to understand the complexity of the contemporary world".…”

Comparing the impact of social support on the life satisfaction of widowed and non-widowed elders

“…Social trust is an important aspect of social capital ( Murgas et al, 2022 ). Trust is a kind of expectation for the behavior and performance of people based on social interaction and personal experience.…”

Urban-Rural Dichotomy of Quality of Life

“…We consider a predictor to be a variable that correlates with QOL at a correlation coefficient level of 0.30 or more. Predictors of QOL are explored by Murgaš, Petrovič, and Tirpáková [26].…”