The Value of Distrust in Social Capital Theory: A Canadian Perspective
碩士 === 國立政治大學 === 國際傳播英語碩士學程(IMICS) === 97 === The paper reviews some of the main perspectives on social capital literature and its relationship with political processes of a democratic government. It has been shown that social capital enables a group to achieve common goals. The present study foc...
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| Format: | Others |
| Language: | en_US |
| Published: |
2008
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| Online Access: | http://ndltd.ncl.edu.tw/handle/87900707856409297116 |
| Summary: | 碩士 === 國立政治大學 === 國際傳播英語碩士學程(IMICS) === 97 === The paper reviews some of the main perspectives on social capital literature and its relationship with political processes of a democratic government. It has been shown that social capital enables a group to achieve common goals. The present study focuses on the trust dimension of social capital.
Salient expressions of trust within a community and towards a government are both generally regarded favorably. Recent studies are alarmed by the present lowered levels of trust of the population towards the government. Scholars and policy makers are trying to find a solution to the problem. The author of this paper argues that lowered expression of trust in the government is not alarming and actually not critical to the well functioning of the government. The author shows that trust networks within a community and trust towards a government do not work in the same way. The author demonstrates how distrust in the government can have a positive impact on both the community and the government itself. It will also be shown that distrust does not limit cooperation and that distrust can push for new institutions to be formed. Distrustful individuals will demand higher transparency and honesty levels from the agents they believe to be untrustworthy until they have proven themselves otherwise. This is particularly important in people – government relationships.
The study uses a historical analysis of two Canadian cases to demonstrate the value of distrust. The Oka crisis of 1990 and the development of the Chantier de l’économie sociale will be detailed and analyzed.
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