scholarly journals Access to Medical Technologies: Do Gender and Social Capital matter?

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 23-31
Author(s):  
Mickaël Géraudel ◽  
Katherine Gundolf** ◽  
Beate Cesinger ◽  
Christina Constantinidis

We explore the relationship between the characteristics of social capital, the speed of access to medical technologies and the role of gender in a private practice context. Our findings from a sample of 98 German private practitioners show that: (a) being a woman has an overall negative impact on the speed of access to medical technologies; (b) private practitioners with strong social network ties obtain quicker access to medical technologies than do those with weak ties; (c) men relying on their weak ties perform better than women who do so. In contrast, we observe that women relying on strong ties outperform their male counterparts in terms of speed of access to medical technologies.

2013 ◽  
Vol 21 (3) ◽  
pp. 42-59 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juliana Sutanto

It is widely established that the levels of generalized trust, norms of reciprocity, and identification (collectively known as relational social capital) in a virtual community have a positive effect on a member’s motivation to contribute knowledge in the community. However, little is known on the antecedents of such relational social capital. This study longitudinally investigates the effects of the strength of network ties on the development of relational social capital in a virtual local community in a Southeast Asia country. It also empirically validates the relationship between relational social capital and actual knowledge contribution. Analyzing 98 community members, the author found that the formation of weak ties is significant on the members’ sense of identification with the community, which in turn positively affects their volume of knowledge contributed in the community.


Author(s):  
José Nederhand

Abstract The topic of government-nonprofit collaboration continues to be much-discussed in the literature. However, there has been little consensus on whether and how collaborating with government is beneficial for the performance of community-based nonprofits. This article examines three dominant theoretical interpretations of the relationship between collaboration and performance: collaboration is necessary for the performance of nonprofits; the absence of collaboration is necessary for the performance of nonprofits; and the effect of collaboration is contingent on the nonprofits’ bridging and bonding network ties. Building on the ideas of governance, nonprofit, and social capital in their respective literature, this article uses set-theoretic methods (fsQCA) to conceptualize and test their relationship. Results show the pivotal role of the nonprofit’s network ties in mitigating the effects of either collaborating or abstaining from collaborating with government. Particularly, the political network ties of nonprofits are crucial to explaining the relationship between collaboration and performance. The evidence demonstrates the value of studying collaboration processes in context.


2019 ◽  
Vol 189 (4) ◽  
pp. 354-357
Author(s):  
Mikael Rostila

Abstract In this issue of the Journal, Baranyi et al. (Am J Epidemiol. 2019;000(00):000–000) examine the longitudinal associations of perceived neighborhood disorder and social cohesion with depressive symptoms among persons aged 50 years or more in 16 different countries. An important contribution of their article is that they study how neighborhood-level social capital relates to depression in different welfare-state contexts. Although the authors provide empirical evidence for some significant differences between welfare states in the relationship between social capital and depression, they say little about potential explanations. In this commentary, I draw attention to welfare-state theory and how it could provide us with a greater understanding of Baranyi et al.’s findings. I also discuss the potential downsides of grouping countries into welfare regimes. I primarily focus on the associations between social cohesion and depression, as these associations were generally stronger than those for neighborhood disorder and depression. Finally, I provide some suggestions for future research within the field and discuss whether the findings could be used to guide policies aimed at increasing social cohesion and health.


Author(s):  
Eeman Basu ◽  
Rabindra Kumar Pradhan ◽  
Hare Ram Tewari

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between organizational citizenship behavior (OCB) and job performance. It also examines the mediating role of social capital in influencing the relationship between OCB and job performance. Design/methodology/approach The study explores the dynamic relationship among the variables of OCB and job performance and social capital. Data were collected from 501 respondents working in 15 healthcare organizations in Kolkata, India, through questionnaire survey. Likert-type rating scales of OCB, job performance and social capital with sound reliability and validity were used to carry out the survey. The data were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Findings The results of the present study show that OCB significantly predicts job performance in healthcare organizations. Social capital found to be a significant mediator between OCB and job performance. Research limitations/implications The findings of the study have a number of implications for organizations in acknowledging and leveraging social capital and encouraging OCB to facilitate superior performance of employees. The generalization of the findings of the study should be restricted to the healthcare organizations in Kolkata due to its own style of functioning, workforce and work environment. The role of demographic variables in influencing the outcome measures has not been considered for the present study. Further research on these aspects may reveal more interesting results with regard to the dynamics among organizational citizenship behavior, social capital and job performance. Practical implications Employee-friendly management practices should be adopted in organizations to facilitate the formation of network building and development of social capital which serves as an asset to organizations and creates competitive advantage. Originality/value The research findings enrich our understanding of voluntary social participation and citizenship behavior of employees for influencing performance at work. The study also provides useful and unique insight on the benefits of networking in healthcare organizations particularly helping employees to cope with emergency situations. The findings as well as methodology used in this study are original and unique.


2021 ◽  
Vol 65 (2) ◽  
pp. 141-155
Author(s):  
Damian S. Pyrkosz

The paper seeks to identify the role of cultural and social diversity in economic development. It starts by defining the terms that are critical to the analysis, including diversity, fractionalization, polarization, social diversity, cultural diversity and economic resources, as well as providing the most significant indexes thereof. The main body of the paper interprets the notions of cultural and social diversity in terms of being a valuable economic resource. Furthermore, it collects a vast body of literature to demonstrate the relationship between the cultural/social diversity and economic development with regard to adverse or positive impact on the latter. In regard to the negative impact of diversity, the paper identifies it in the area of social communication, social capital and networks, as it effectively causes a decrease in productivity and increase in social conflict and isolation. The positive link is demonstrated with examples in the areas of innovation, creativity, usage of complementary abilities and experiences, and their role in increasing productivity. The paper refers to numerous data sources, studies and indexes illustrating how the economic systems of various countries perform in the context of the paper’s subject-matter.


2019 ◽  
Vol 57 (5) ◽  
pp. 1237-1253 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fu-Sheng Tsai ◽  
I-Chieh Hsu

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the influences of social capital on knowledge heterogeneity in order to advance the understanding of the effects and to reconcile existing inconsistent findings. Design/methodology/approach Survey data collected from 105 new product development (NPD) projects were analyzed with regression-based methods. Findings The results indicated that trust, centralization and shared vision as the three social capital dimensions generally have negative impacts on the domain and presentation dimensions of knowledge heterogeneity. However, the three dimensions of social capital do not exhibit consistent influences on the tacitness heterogeneity (i.e. an epistemological dimension of knowledge heterogeneity). Research limitations/implications More research is needed to explore the role of social capital dimensions in developing a range of knowledge attributes of NPD teams, among which knowledge heterogeneity is one. The various dimensions of knowledge an NPD team possesses should have performance implications and deserve future investigation. Originality/value The study is one of the first documented attempts to demonstrate contingencies in the relationship between social capital and knowledge heterogeneity. The effect of social capital on knowledge heterogeneity should be understood at the level of dimensions of the two respective constructs.


Author(s):  
Andrew S Gold

This chapter discusses how the ‘stickler-enjoining’ account of equity has important limits. While many distinctive doctrines of equity can be understood to limit stickler behaviour, equity in fact often turns a blind eye to, and sometimes even enables, stickler behaviour. One can sort cases in which equity restrains sticklers from those in which it is indifferent to stickler behaviour if one attends to the role of the state in private litigation. Sometimes the state’s responsibilities require it to protect plaintiffs against sticklers. Other times, it requires it to protect the stickler, as a means, for example, of keeping as open as possible each person’s sphere of choices. Ultimately, the self-regarding account of equity sheds light on the question of the relationship between equity and justice: from the distinct perspective of the judgment, sometimes equitable justice is better than legal justice and sometimes legal justice is better than equitable justice.


Author(s):  
Natalia Letki

This chapter examines the role of civil society and social capital in democratization processes. It begins by reconstructing the definitions of civil society and social capital in the context of political change, followed by an analysis of the ways in which civil society and social capital are functional for the initiation and consolidation of democracies. It then considers the relationship between civil society and attitudes of trust and reciprocity, the function of networks and associations in democratization, paradoxes of civil society and social capital in new democracies, and main arguments cast against the idea that civic activism and attitudes are a necessary precondition for a modern democracy. The chapter argues that civil society and social capital and their relation to political and economic institutions are context specific.


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