Trends in Greensboros Social Capital: Preliminary Findings from the 2006 National Social Capital Community Benchmark Survey Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro Community Dialogue March 15, 2007 Social Capital: What is it? Social Capital is the glue that holds the fabric of our society together in regards to: Civic Connectedness Social & Political Involvement Trust & Reciprocity Social Capital: Why is it important? As research indicates, communities with higher levels of social capital typically work better Citizens are healthier, economic development is strong, communities are safer, and kids perform better in school In the new economy, communities that figure out how to effectively leverage their collective strengths, are those communities that will thrive in the 21 st century world In other words Just like you need investment capital to prosper and human capital to grow, you need strong social capital to make necessary and lasting change in a community. If social capital is fragmented so is action. Social Capital in Guilford County in 2000: Top-Line Findings from the 1 st Survey Higher Scores than in Comparable Communities: Faith-based engagement VolunteeringGiving Lower Scores than in Comparable Communities: Informal Socializing Trust Inter-racial trust Trust in persons outside ones social circle Protest Politics 2006 Greensboro Survey Developed by Harvard University Professor, Robert Putnam (Bowling Alone) Scientific telephone poll that included 450 residents from Greensboro as a representative sample, 2,741 people for the national sample and 21 communities participating across the country 2006 data are compared against Greensboro sub-sample of the 2000 survey (n=546 out of 750) with data are weighted to reflect demographics of Greensboros population (gender, age, race, ethnicity, education) Thanks to our funding partners: Joseph M. Bryan Foundation; Cemala Foundation; Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro; News and Record; Tanenbaum-Sternberger Foundation; and Weaver Foundation Top Line Results 1.Monetary Giving 2.Volunteerism and Engagement in Community Organizations 3.Bridging Social Capital 4.Social Trust 5.Connecting with Public Institutions 6.Leadership in Organizations Monetary Giving Despite a difficult economic climate, giving trends remain positive Greensboro residents give more than national averages As expected, giving to religious organizations exceeds giving to non-religious organizations Are more people giving or are the same people giving more? Economic Characteristics* Source: Economic Characteristics* Source: Monetary Giving A. Monetary Giving Volunteerism and Engagement Greensboro residents are highly engaged in organizations and activities that advance the well-being of the community Volunteerism has increased substantially over the past 6 years While people are more engaged, it is increasingly through informal channels One traditional measure of leadership, that is serving as an officer of an organization, is declining Increased participation with faith-based organizations mirrors similar trends in other Southern communities Volunteerism and Engagement Q31. How often you attend religious services? GSO 2000 (n = 546) GSO 2006 (n = 450) National 2000 (n=28874) National 2006 (n=2741) Every week (or more often) 37.1%43.9%33.2%34.5% Almost every week 11.5%11.3%7.9%6.7% Once or twice a month 18.6%15.3%16.9%14.9% A few times per year 12.2%6.8%16.2%16.9% Less often than that 8.2%11.4%12.0%12.2% NA (no religion)11.3%11.1%13.5%14.5% Dont know0.8%0.2%-0.4% Refused---0.2% Volunteerism and Engagement Bridging Social Capital: Social Interaction Increased socializing in public places while socializing at home declined while socializing at home declined Increased socializing across race More inter-racial friendships, especially involving Latinos Bridging Social Capital Social Trust Decline in % who think that most people can be trusted parallel to national decline GSO remains lower than national levels But the overall trend is driven by whites Opposite trends for blacks vs. whites Picture is similar for trust people in your neighborhood Slight improvement in inter-racial trust Improvement among whites parallels national trends Increase trust among blacks of whites and of Latinos exceeds national findings SOCIAL TRUST Q7A. How much you can trust people in your neighborhood Greensboro 2000 (n = 546) Greensboro 2006 (n = 450) National 2000 (n = 28452) National 2006 (n=2741) Trust them a lot43.5%38.8%47.3%45.1% Trust them some36.6%39.4%34.8%34.2% Trust them only a little12.0%15.0%12.3%13.3% Trust them not at all5.0% 5.6% Among Whites: Greensboro 2000 (n = 346) Greensboro 2006 (n = 245) National 2000 (n = 20097) National 2006 (n=1901) Trust them a lot54.1%52.2%56.2%54.0% Trust them some34.9%32.2%32.9%33.2% Trust them only a little6.6%11.8%7.7%8.3% Trust them not at all1.9%2.9%3.3%2.8% Among African Americans: Greensboro 2000 (n = 149) Greensboro 2006 (n = 154) National 2000 (n=3418) National 2006 (n=261) Trust them a lot18.8%24.0%21.0%24.2% Trust them some44.1%48.7%43.4%38.7% Trust them only a little22.4%22.1%23.2%22.9% Trust them not at all10.3%5.8%12.5%11.7% Q7A. How much you can trust people in your neighborhood? Connecting with Public Institutions Interest and involvement in public affairs is at national averages High levels of voting Slight decrease in direct involvement with the political process Increased participation in groups that took social/political action Decreased levels of trust in local government and police Connecting with Public Institutions 25 How much of the time can you trust local government to do what is right? Na tio nal Gre ens bor o Wi ns to n- Sa le m Du lut h- Su pe rio r Kala maz oo Ka ns as Le wis ton- Au bur n ME New Ham pshi re Roc hes ter NY Sa ra so ta FL 1 Just about always Most of the time Some of the time Hardly ever Don't know Ref use d ,4 Hardly ever or Some of the time Connecting with Public Institutions Leadership in Organizations Generally, Greensboro is above average in leadership as measured through officer or committee positions in organizations However, Greensboro residents levels of volunteerism ranks at the top nationally Are residents finding other, less formal ways to contribute to the community? What are the other ways to gauge leadership in a community? Leadership in Organizations (within past year) * Leadership in Organizations (within past year) * Economic Characteristics* *Source: Leadership in Organizations (within past year) * Leadership in Organizations (within past year) * Top Line Results 1.Monetary Giving 2.Volunteerism and Engagement in Community Organizations 3.Bridging Social Capital 4.Social Trust 5.Connecting with Public Institutions 6.Leadership in Organizations A Split Personality.. Trust and Engagement: how are they related? Interpersonal Level If we want to increase trust, how can we engage with other people more often to develop relationships? Organizational Level If we want to increase trust among organizations, how do we create partnerships that foster positive civic discourse? Community Level If we want more people to engage in community-wide issues, how do we create a shared vision for our direction? Engagement Trust ? What do these findings say to you? What can you do to build Social Capital? Personally? Organizationally? For your Community?