Toward a Unified Framework for Social Capital

Social capital is a widely used concept that remains fragmented across disciplines and applications, often applied without a shared understanding or common theoretical foundation. In this webinar, we step away from the impulse to catalogue the differences further and instead explore the underlying commonalities in how social capital is understood and applied. Drawing from a capital-theoretic perspective, this presentation investigates the internal logic of social capital—what it is, how it forms, and why it functions as a form of capital.

Rather than treating competing theories as incompatible, I consider the possibility that each perspective reveals a part of a more coherent whole. Grounded against the logic of capital, as a process, we can identify consistency across approaches and gain deeper insights into how social capital facilitates the outcomes we are interested in.

This webinar will be held twice, at 7am and 7pm CEST, to make it accessible globally. The webinar will provide scholars, practitioners, and policymakers with a clearer conceptual foundation for social capital theory and a practical framework for understanding its diverse applications. Regardless of your interest in social capital, this webinar will provide tools for thinking more clearly—and working more effectively—with social capital.

About the presenter:

Tristan Claridge is the Director of the Institute for Social Capital and Visiting Associate Professor at Heriot-Watt University. He is an independent researcher, consultant, and trainer working to advance the concept of social capital. His work utilises the concept of social capital in various applications, including economic development, community development, organisational and project performance, poverty alleviation, and others. Over the last twenty years, he has worked to refine the theories of social capital and help others enhance their understanding and application of the concept in research, practice, and policy. He has developed an approach to the application of social capital that is logically consistent, theoretically grounded, and easy to understand and apply to research and practical applications. He draws on lessons from economics, sociology, political science, psychology, urban planning, and other disciplines that contribute to understanding the concept. Driven by his belief in the power of discourse and collaboration, Tristan continues to work towards advancing social capital theory and practice globally. Tristan is the current President of the International Social Capital Association and chair of the Social Capital Paradigm Interest Group.