Notwithstanding the appealing and plausible benevolent consequences of social capital for democracies, it has been obvious from the very beginning that civil societies do not provide a cure for each and every problem. In addition, forewarnings have been presented that social capital itself implies the development of anti- and non-democratic orientation as well as the persistence of social inequality. In the middle of an ocean of discussions on the positive consequences of social capital, these less benign aspects are usually overlooked. Several authors dealt explicitly with a ‘dark side’ of social capital and mention possible noxious, harmful, or nasty aspects. In spite of these critical approaches towards the concept of social capital, this realm of research has just concluded its first phase. Clear-cut definitions of negative social capital are still as much missing as convincing empirical evidence of its consequences on democratic decision-making processes. The ‘social capital’-research team of the TRALEG group has been eager to try and fill those conceptual and empirical gaps. An outcome of the team’s work is the Special Issue of the American Behavioral Scientist, on Civicness, Equality, and Democracy:
A ‘Dark Side’ of Social Capital? due to be published in early 2009, with the following list of contents:
- Jan W. van Deth & Sonja Zmerli: Introduction
- Jan W. van Deth: Participation in Voluntary Associations: Dark Shades in a Sunny World?
- Sonja Zmerli: Social Capital and Norms of Citizenship: An Ambiguous Relationship?
- Filippo Barbera & Roberto Albano: Social Capital, Welfare State, and Political Legitimacy
- Gema García Albacete: The Saliency of Political Cleavages and the ‘Dark Sides’ of Social Capital: Evidence from Spain
- Hajdeja Iglic: Voluntary Associations and Tolerance: An Ambiguous Relationship
- Sigrid Roßteutscher: Social Capital Worldwide: Potential for Democratisation or Stabiliser of Authoritarian Rule?
- Monika Ewa Kaminska: Bonding Social Capital in a Post-Communist Region