Relationships matter: social capital theory and audiences research

Damásio, M., & Henriques, S. (2011). Relationships matter: social capital theory and audiences research . Zagreb conference: "New challenges and methodological innovations in European media audience research". 7-9 April 2011.

Abstract: There have been few scientific concepts that have caught the scientific community's attention so much as the case of social capital. However, despite the importance researchers have given to this concept, several criticisms have arisen, recognizing its spectrum as being excessively broad and too vague to be helpful, calling for it to be examined and applied in practical and empirical studies as a way of clarifying and revealing the concept’s worth. This work depicts an empirical study that introduces social capital as a core element for studying media audiences and the related experience of social relationships mediated by media technology. The study questions whether interactive social media sites are capable of promoting greater levels of social involvement within communities, increasing the sense of community and the levels of social capital shared between individuals. Three local communities were analysed in what concerns their identity, activities and relationships. The communities were examined both before and after the introduction of an interactive online platform, encouraging a discussion about civic participation, social cohesion, media based participatory culture and linkages between face-to-face and virtual realities. Essentially, the study explores the relationship between online technology and social relationships. It values the concept of social capital as useful to understanding collective actions online and offline, claiming that the use and appropriation of new media technologies can foster levels of social interactions, developing original forms of connectedness and new social and cultural configurations in our current society.