Divided we fall? The effect of manufacturing decline on the social capital of US communities

Diemer, Andreas (2023) Divided we fall? The effect of manufacturing decline on the social capital of US communities. Journal of Regional Science. ISSN 0022-4146

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Abstract

What happens to local communities when manufacturing disappears? I examine changes in associational density over nearly two decades as a proxy for social capital in US labor markets. Exploiting plausibly exogenous trade‐induced shocks to local manufacturing activity, I test whether deindustrialization is associated with greater or lower organizational membership. I uncover a robust negative relationship between the two variables, particularly acute in rural and mostly‐White areas. My findings, however, are sensitive to measurement: There are no clearly discernible effects of deindustrialization on social capital when I consider alternative proxies for the outcome. To reconcile these results, I present evidence suggesting that economic adversity may induce a qualitative, rather than quantitative, change in social capital.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	© 2023 The Author(s)
Divisions:	Geography & Environment
Subjects:	H Social Sciences H Social Sciences > HD Industries. Land use. Labor
Date Deposited:	03 Oct 2023 14:06
Last Modified:	08 May 2024 21:21
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/120355

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