Dynamics of Social Capital: Trends and Turnover in Associational Membership in England and Wales, 1972-1999

Following the important recent work of Robert Putnam, there is considerable current debate about whether the volume of ‘social capital’ in western societies is in decline and if so what might be the implications for political democracy. Evaluations of the arguments are difficult both because the concept of social capital is a contested one and because measuring social capital is difficult. This paper focuses on membership of voluntary associations in England and Wales as a key measure of social capital and analyses trends in associational membership and their social determinants using the Oxford Mobility Study and British Household Panel Survey. We show that focusing on seven associations there is a broad pattern of stability in membership with the striking and remarkable exception of falling male membership of trade unions and working-men?s clubs. We see this as testimony to a class polarisation in membership in which working class men have been increasingly marginalised from associational memberships. Our conclusion argues that if the membership of voluntary associations is to be used as an index of social capital, there is an increasing social skewing of membership and an intensifying service class hegemony over social capital which poses major concerns for its potential to sustain democratic politics.