000 01173pab a2200181 454500
008 180718b2001 xxu||||| |||| 00| 0 eng d
100 _aLowndes, Vivien
245 _aSocial capital and local governance: exploring the institutional design variable
260 _c2001
300 _ap.629-47
362 _aSep
520 _aThis article argues that Robert Putnam's social capital thesis is too society-centred and undervalues state agency and associated political factors. It explores the role of institutional design in explaining how governments can shape the development of social capital and its potential influence upon democratic performance. New Labour's programme of `democratic renewal' within British local government provides an excellent opportunity to assess the relevance of institutional design to arguments about social capital and democracy. We propose that prospects for the creation and mobilization of social capital may depend as much upon the process as the content of institutional design. - Reproduced
650 _aSocial capital
650 _aLocal government
700 _aWilson, David
773 _aPolitical Studies
909 _a50038
999 _c50038
_d50038