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Community Social Capital and Entrepreneurship

Publication ,  Journal Article
Kwon, SW; Heflin, C; Ruef, M
Published in: American Sociological Review
2013

The literature on social capital and entrepreneurship often explores individual benefits of social capital, such as the role of personal networks in promoting self-employment. In this article, we instead examine social capital's public good aspects, arguing that the benefits of social trust and organization memberships accrue not just to the individual but to the community at large. We test these arguments using individual data from the 2000 Census that have been merged with two community surveys, the Social Capital Benchmark Survey and the General Social Survey. We find that individuals in communities with high levels of social trust are more likely to be self-employed compared to individuals in communities with lower levels of social trust. Additionally, membership in organizations connected to the larger community is associated with higher levels of self-employment, but membership in isolated organizations that lack connections to the larger community is associated with lower levels of self-employment. Further analysis suggests that the entrepreneurship-enhancing effects of community social capital are stronger for whites, native-born residents, and long-term community members than for minorities, immigrants, and recent entrants. © American Sociological Association 2013.

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Published In

American Sociological Review

DOI

EISSN

1939-8271

ISSN

0003-1224

Publication Date

2013

Volume

78

Issue

6

Start / End Page

980 / 1008

Related Subject Headings

  • Sociology
  • 4410 Sociology
  • 1608 Sociology
 

Citation

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ICMJE
MLA
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Kwon, S. W., Heflin, C., & Ruef, M. (2013). Community Social Capital and Entrepreneurship. American Sociological Review, 78(6), 980–1008. https://doi.org/10.1177/0003122413506440
Kwon, S. W., C. Heflin, and M. Ruef. “Community Social Capital and Entrepreneurship.” American Sociological Review 78, no. 6 (2013): 980–1008. https://doi.org/10.1177/0003122413506440.
Kwon SW, Heflin C, Ruef M. Community Social Capital and Entrepreneurship. American Sociological Review. 2013;78(6):980–1008.
Kwon, S. W., et al. “Community Social Capital and Entrepreneurship.” American Sociological Review, vol. 78, no. 6, 2013, pp. 980–1008. Manual, doi:10.1177/0003122413506440.
Kwon SW, Heflin C, Ruef M. Community Social Capital and Entrepreneurship. American Sociological Review. 2013;78(6):980–1008.
Journal cover image

Published In

American Sociological Review

DOI

EISSN

1939-8271

ISSN

0003-1224

Publication Date

2013

Volume

78

Issue

6

Start / End Page

980 / 1008

Related Subject Headings

  • Sociology
  • 4410 Sociology
  • 1608 Sociology