The Influence of Social Capital on Individual Health: Is it the Neighbourhood or the Network?

Publication date

2015

Authors

Mohnen, S.M.ISNI 000000039337381X
Völker, BeateISNI 0000000384149170
Flap, HenkISNI 0000000383754117
Subramanian, S. V.
Groenewegen, P.P.ISNI 0000000114729052

Editors

Advisors

Supervisors

Document Type

Article
Open Access logo

License

taverne

Abstract

We examined the influence of both individual and neighbourhood social capital on individual health and analysed whether effects of one type of social capital are contingent upon the other. The Dutch 'Housing and Living Survey' (WoON 2006, n = 53,269) was used and combined with information on neighbourhoods (n = 3,273). Using an ecometric approach to estimate neighbourhood social capital, we found that both types of capital were associated with health. In addition, those who have only few contacts with friends and relatives have nevertheless a good health if they have much neighbourhood social capital. The findings demonstrate the potential importance of both types of social capital and the possibility of compensation of one type of social capital by the other one.

Keywords

Ecometrics, Neighborhood, Netherlands, Self-rated health, Social capital, Taverne, Developmental and Educational Psychology, Arts and Humanities (miscellaneous), Sociology and Political Science, General Social Sciences

Citation

Mohnen, S M, Volker, B, Flap, H, Subramanian, S V & Groenewegen, P P 2015, 'The Influence of Social Capital on Individual Health : Is it the Neighbourhood or the Network?', Social Indicators Research, vol. 121, pp. 195-214. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11205-014-0632-8