The Challenge of Socio-economic Cohesion in the Enlarged European Union: Patterns of Social Capital/Civil Society and Development Policy Styles among Cohesion and CEECs and Lessons for Candidate Members (SOCCOH)

This research investigated how social capital and civil society may stimulate social partnerships, improve administrative capacity and so help meet European development goals.  The work looked at patterns of interactions between social capital levels, civil society capacities and the effectiveness and efficiency of development policy processes in cohesion countries, new members states and candidate member states. Whilst the work added to ongoing debates about the role and nature of social capital, the surveys, cases studies and analyses could also contribute towards understanding of the impact of Europeanization on public policy. The research was organised around three main questions – what are the principal differences in the structure of civil society within EU Member States.  Second, how are these differences related to the effectiveness and efficiency of development policy processes; and third, how might the Europeanization of public policy strengthen social capital resources at large? CPS contributed to the literature review on social capital and economic development.  Second, we produced a detailed country case study of social capital and regional policy making, in particular, the implementation EU regional policy programmes.  This involved gathering contextual information, identifying and interviewing stakeholders, carrying Social Network Analysis of the policy process and identifying proxy indicators to assess casual relations. The final aim was to add to the ever-expanding methodological literature on appropriate measurements for social capital.  The Hungarian team employed a series of techniques, surveys and databases to assess social capital types and levels in Hungary, and to produce reliable and policy relevant indicators.