The role of social capital components on local economic growth : Local cohesion and openness in French rural areas

This paper investigates empirically the economic role of some sociological factors, such as the intensity and nature of local social relationships, on economic growth in rural areas at the micro level. We use the bonding/linking/bridging classification suggested in the social capital literature (Putnam, 2000; Woolcock, 1998). Bonding links consist of strong linkages between similar people, which ensure the stability of relationships, but tend to lead to inertia and closure. Bridging links are weak ties that often lead to valuable new opportunities. Linking social capital is an intermediate category that consists of links between people from different social categories. This form of social capital favors both stability and openness. We use French data to examine these three forms of social capital within a local population and employment growth model inspired by Boarnet (1994), and to evaluate their impacts on local economic growth. The results suggest that all three forms of social capital have a robust and positive role on change in rural population and employment.