Young People’s Well-Being and the Association with Social Capital, i.e. Social Networks, Trust and Reciprocity

Abstract

The paper explores the association between social capital of young people at 12–13 years and their subjective well-being using Finland’s sub-sample of the third wave of the International Survey of Children’s Well-Being. Despite much previous research on this topic, relatively little knowledge is accumulated given that different studies define and measure social capital differently. In line with Robert Putnam, we understand social capital as a combination of social networks, trust, and norms of reciprocity. We measure well-being with two context-free scales: a one-dimensional overall life satisfaction scale and a five-dimensional Student’s life satisfaction scale. The analysis is done with linear and unconditional quantile regression. The results indicate that all three dimensions of social capital are significantly associated with well-being. Of the three, trust is the strongest predictor explaining over 30% of the variance in both well-being scales. The study demonstrates the relevance of considering all dimensions of social capital together to avoid unobserved variable bias. Quantile regression reveals that while social capital is important for well-being across the quantiles, it is particularly important for the youth who fare poorly otherwise. Family-related variables showed the strongest association with well-being while relationships with friends, schoolmates, teachers, and other people mattered considerably less.

The Relationship between Social Participation and Subjective Well-Being among Older People in the Chinese Culture Context: The Mediating Effect of Reciprocity Beliefs

“…Their results showed that reciprocity is related to SWB [ 77 ]. Another study showed that the importance of perceived reciprocity in SWB increases with age [ 78 ]. According to that study, to improve the mental health of the elderly, reciprocity in social exchanges is an important factor [ 66 ], and it should be noted that older Chinese people have reported having more reciprocal friendships of emotional solace than young Chinese people have [ 56 ].…”

Positive affect as mediator: The socioemotional selectivity theory applied to the association between bonding social capital and wellbeing in later life

“…Research of social capital throughout the lifespan indicates that its association with wellbeing can vary among age groups and demographics. During childhood for instance, bonding social capital is important for emotional wellbeing (Tuominen & Haanpää, 2022). Nieminen et al (2010) found positive associations between aspects of both bonding and bridging social capital and psychological wellbeing in age groups from 30 years up to 80+ years.…”

Adolescent social capital: An intergenerational resource?

“…A multidimensional approach to social capital is relevant not only for theoretical motives, but also because the different dimensions have found to be correlated (Helliwell & Putnam, 2004; Tuominen & Haanpää, 2022) and yet, they may have different origins. Below, we go through some often‐referred mechanisms, which earlier research has associated with the shaping of young people's social relationships, trust, and reciprocal behaviors.…”