Assessment of social capital and human development index in Iran

Abstract

Over the recent decades, sociologists and economists believe that physical capital is not the only available and necessary kind of capital. Evidence are emphasized that human capital, natural capital, cultural capital and social capital also have an important role in human social life. Although social capital has been known as core concept of development, however in developing countries scholars do not stress enough on this concept. A large number of studies still attempt to identify dimensions of social capital and believe that social capital refers to the organizations and networks and the underlying norms and values that govern the interactions among people in society. According to World Bank social capital is a necessary condition for long-term development and that social capital is the capital of the poor. Social capital, in its best forms, contributes to economic, social and political development by enabling information-sharing, mitigating opportunistic behavior, and facilitating collective decision-making. To assess the role of social capital in contributing of human development of Iran, this study was conducted by using a method of Meta Analysis of findings about study of social capital in 28 providences of Iran provided from 2002 until 2007. Social capital was measured by assessment of six dimensions including trust, participation, honestly, public information, participation in elections, and crime for each province. HPI (Human Poverty Index) was considered to determine the level of poverty in each province. Results revealed negative relationship between level of social capital and HPI. However provinces with higher level of poverty showed lower level of social capital.