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Social Capital Project

About the Project

The Social Capital Project is a multi-year research effort that will investigate the evolving nature, quality, and importance of our associational life. “Associational life” is our shorthand for the web of social relationships through which we pursue joint endeavors—namely, our families, our communities, our workplaces, and our religious congregations. These institutions are critical to forming our character and capacities, providing us with meaning and purpose, and for addressing the many challenges we face.
                

The Latest

August 01, 2017

The Rise in Opioid Overdose Deaths

Our physical and mental health reflects the health of our relationships with others. Studies show that social networks influence the behavior of their members, affecting whether they are obese or fit, happy or sad. The stark fact is that socially isolated people and others without social support die...
May 15, 2017

What We Do Together: The State of Associational Life in America

Today, Americans face a wide variety of challenges in our era of tumultuous transition. We are materially better off in many ways than in the past. But despite this real progress, there is a sense that our social fabric has seen better days. Leading thinkers have issued warnings that we are increasi...