Pandemic at the Gates: The Improvement of Social Capital and Collective Efficacy in Neighbourhoods of the Greater Jakarta Metropolitan Area

Abstract

This study seeks to interpret the presence of social capital and collective efficacy among residents of neighbourhoods in the Greater Metropolitan Jakarta Area (GJMA) due to the COVID-19 pandemic. A quantitative study was undertaken by surveying 922 GJMA residents on the basis of their perception of the improvement of five components of social capital. During this period, neighbourhood residents improved their social capital and practised collective efficacy in several concrete forms to meet their common goals and procure the required goods. Although this study finds the shared values and norms, social network size, mutual aid and trust, civic engagement and participation in activities improved during the pandemic, the level of monthly income and marital and tenurial status implicated the quality of social ties and capital.