Social Capital and Black and Minority Ethnic Groups in Britain

Li Y¹*

1. Birmingham University, Birmingham, UK

Social capital research has made significant advances in recent years. Yet, owing to the limitation of data and research methods used, there is rather little research on the social capital of Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) groups in Britain using national representative survey data. This paper seeks to make a contribution in this area, using the most authoritative source of British Household Panel Survey (BHPS). Conceptually, I will use social networks approaches to theorizing on social capital formation. Methodologically, I will use latent class models to measure types of social capital from sets of categorical component variables. Three types of social capital are measured: neighbourhood attachment, social networks and civic participation. I will then examine the distribution of the three types of social capital among the BME groups, taking into account both their personal characteristics and their socio-cultural factors. I will also make use of the panel structure of the BHPS data to analyse the impacts of the three types of social capital on the BME groups’ subsequent situations in the labour market. I will show that the BME groups have very different profiles in access to social capital as is rooted in their socio-cultural-economic conditions, and that social capital, particularly the type of informal social networks, is of particular importance in helping the most disadvantaged ethnic groups climb out of poverty. Policy implications are also considered.

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