Ahn, Mi Young and Davis, Howard H.. 2020. Sense of belonging as an indicator of social capital. International Journal of Sociology and Social Policy, 40(7/8), pp. 627-642. ISSN 0144-333X [Article]

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Abstract or Description

Purpose
This paper examines the possibility of using sense of belonging as an indicator for social capital. Social capital, from the collective social capital theory perspective, is constructed from three main elements: trust, social network and participation. Social capital is crucial to civil society and well-being, but there is no consensus on how to define and measure it. This paper approaches this problem with the different but related concept of sense of belonging, as belonging overlaps with social capital conceptually, but also is more amenable to measurement.

Design/methodology/approach
Qualitative and quantitative data was collected from approximately 800 university students and used to explore the relationship between belonging and social capital both conceptually and empirically in the higher education context.

Findings
The mixed methods research analysis in this paper provides strong evidence to show how sense of belonging and social capital are theoretically and empirically intertwined, Conceptually they occupy overlapping spheres and their connections can be clearly traced and measured. This is supported by substantial statistical evidence of their relatedness, despite their independent origins in social research. For these reasons, this paper argues that sense of belonging can be used as a simplified alternative way to measure social capital.

Originality/value
This paper explains the advantages of using sense of belonging to understand social capital. It sets out a conceptual framework and provides a statistical demonstration. This paper develops and enriches a current strand of social capital and sense of belonging research in the fields of sociology and higher education policy.

Item Type:	Article
Identification Number (DOI):	https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSSP-12-2019-0258
Additional Information:	'This author accepted manuscript is deposited under a Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC) licence. This means that anyone may distribute, adapt, and build upon the work for non-commercial purposes, subject to full attribution. If you wish to use this manuscript for commercial purposes, please contact permissions@emerald.com.' Student's Sense of Belonging to Bangor University in 2014 was financially supported by Bangor University's Widening Access Fund (2013–2014).
Keywords:	sense of belonging, social capital, social network, participation, higher education, mixed methods
Departments, Centres and Research Units:	Sociology
Dates:	Date Event 30 April 2020 Published Online June 2020 Published
Item ID:	36488
Date Deposited:	05 Jun 2024 09:34
Last Modified:	05 Jun 2024 14:16
Peer Reviewed:	Yes, this version has been peer-reviewed.
URI:	https://research.gold.ac.uk/id/eprint/36488

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