Social Capital in East York: A Field Guide to Social Support On and Off Line

• In Event: 3565 - Social Capital: Isolation and Integration

Abstract

We examine the social capital of Canadians living in the East York neighborhood of Toronto and how they exchange a wide range of social support types. Just as we have had to deconstruct social support and role relationships to understand its component parts, we now deconstruct how different digital media are used for exchanging informal social support. Drawing on the theoretical framework of social affordance, we investigate how digital media intersects with receiving and giving of different types of social support. We draw on 101 in-depth interviews conducted in 2013-2014 to understand the dynamics of the support networks of East Yorkers. Our findings show that not much has changed since the 1960s in terms of the role relationships that East Yorkers have (siblings, children, etc.) and the types of support mobilized via social networks: companionship, small and large services, emotional aid, and financial support. What has changed is how digital media interweave in complex ways with different social relations to mobilize different types of support. Digital media activated a wide range of ties for support and help build social capital, but also played a central role in the maintenance over time of weak and latent ties that are temporarily dormant, yet become active again when need arises.

Authors

• Anabel Quan-Haase, University of Western Ontario

• Molly-Gloria Harper, University of Western Ontario