Key research themes
1. How do network structures and the quality of social ties shape the formation and utility of social capital?
This theme investigates social capital through the lens of network analysis, focusing on how individual and group-level network structures facilitate access to resources, influence social stratification, and affect performance across organizations and communities. Understanding the multidimensionality of social ties, including their quantity and quality, reveals how social capital operates as both a personal asset and a group resource, influencing inequality, coordination, and social cohesion.
2. How do normative structures and socio-cultural contexts influence the organization, utilization, and power dynamics of social capital?
This theme focuses on the embeddedness of social capital within normative frameworks such as markets, bureaucracies, associative groups, and communal networks. It investigates the role of norms and values in shaping when and how social capital is accessed and employed, the distinction between potential and used social capital, and how power relations are articulated through social capital within diverse social and cultural settings. It advances understanding of social capital beyond network topology toward socio-cultural mechanisms and policy implications.
3. How do cultural capital and metaphorical capital frameworks influence the understanding of identity, inequality, and educational outcomes within marginalized communities?
This theme addresses the use of cultural capital and related metaphorical capital constructs to interpret social inequalities, especially in educational contexts involving communities of color and marginalized groups. It critically examines the limitations of capital metaphors in capturing cultural identities, discusses alternative frameworks to conceptualize culture and knowledge, and explores how social and cultural capital intersect with structural inequalities and identity formation processes.