Social capital and regional development: an introduction

This introductory chapter treats four issues: general relationships between social capital and space; what regional development is; the importance of social capital for regional development; and a summary of the other chapters. The first section contains a discussion on the relationships between social capital and space, distance, barriers and spatial hierarchies on how social capital is affected by, but also has an impact on these phenomena. The next section deals with and problematizes the question of what regional development is in forms of economic outcomes, well-being and various aspects of sustainability. Based on the view that social capital is created in all sectors of society as well as between them, the third section discusses which forms of social capital are most important for regions’ development. One important conclusion is that ‘maximum’ social capital seldom is the best solution. Instead, the best social capital for regional development can be described as optimum combinations of homogeneity and heterogeneity, bonding and bridging links and different ‘vintages’ of networks, norms and values. Finally, the chapters of the book are summarized.