The Impact of Social Capital on Community Resilience: A Comparative Study of Seven Flood-Prone Communities in Nanjing, China

Abstract

Social capital plays a crucial role in enhancing community resilience during flood disasters. This study investigates the influence of social capital on community resilience in Nanjing, China. Social capital is composed of five aspects: cohesion, collective efficacy, sense of belonging, trust and reciprocity and informal social control. Factor analysis and multiple regression analysis are employed to analyze the dimensions of social capital and its impact on community resilience. Our results demonstrate that social cohesion and collective efficacy are the most representative factors of social capital. Reformed housing communities typically have higher cohesion than those in commercial and affordable housing. Affordable housing communities in flood-prone areas have higher collective efficacy but lower trust and reciprocity. Commercial housing communities have higher informal social control but have great internal differences in collective efficacy. We strongly urge government decision makers to enhance flood resilience by fostering social capital within local communities.