Tweeting Alone? An Analysis of Bridging and Bonding Social Capital in Online Networks

• Author: Niheer Dasandi,David Hudson,Jennifer vanHeerde-Hudson,Yannis Theocharis,Javier Sajuria
• Published date: 01 July 2015
• DOI: 10.1177/1532673X14557942
• Date: 01 July 2015
• Subject Matter: Articles

American Politics Research

2015, Vol. 43(4) 708 –738

© The Author(s) 2014

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DOI: 10.1177/1532673X14557942

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Article

Tweeting Alone? An

Analysis of Bridging and

Bonding Social Capital in

Online Networks

Javier Sajuria1, Jennifer vanHeerde-Hudson1,

David Hudson1, Niheer Dasandi1, and Yannis

Theocharis2

Abstract

In this article, we test Putnam’s claim that online interactions are unable to

foster social capital by examining the formation of bridging and bonding social

capital in online networks. Using Burt’s concepts of closure and brokerage

as indicators, we observe networks formed through online interactions

and test them against several theoretical models. We test Putnam’s claim

using Twitter data from three events: the Occupy movement in 2011, the

IF Campaign in 2013, and the Chilean Presidential Election of the same

year. Our results provide the first evidence that online networks are able

to produce the structural features of social capital. In the case of bonding

social capital, online ties are more effective in forming close networks than

theory predicts. However, bridging social capital is observed under certain

conditions, for example, in the presence of organizations and professional

brokers. This latter finding provides additional evidence for the argument

that social capital follows similar patterns online and offline.

Keywords

social capital, Twitter, network simulation, closure, brokerage, social media

1University College London, UK

2University of Mannheim, Germany

Corresponding Author:

Javier Sajuria, University College London, 29/31 Tavistock Square, London WC1H 9QU, UK.

Email: j.sajuria@ucl.ac.uk

557942APRXXX10.1177/1532673X14557942American Politics ResearchSajuria et al.

research-article2014

Sajuria et al. 709

Introduction

Putnam’s (2001) thesis outlining the decline of social capital in the United

States re-invigorated one of the most enduring debates and research agendas

in political science and elsewhere. His central argument that social connec-

tions are vital for the sustainability and stability of a democratic society ele-

vated social capital from the individual or group level of analysis (Putnam,

1994, 2001) to an understanding of how social capital affects political institu-

tions. His thesis has been taken up by scholars studying social capital in a

variety of national contexts (Bowles & Gintis, 2002; Colletta & Cullen, 2000;

Claridge, 2004; Hooghe & Stolle, 2003; Pinchotti & Verwimp, 2007) and has

been subject to numerous revisions and rejoinders (Sobel, 2002; Tzanakis,

2013). Twenty years on from Putnam’s initial publication, the debate over

social capital shows no sign of abating, instead taking on a new dimension—

the development of information and communication technologies (ICTs).

The explosion of ICTs has transformed inter-personal communications

and, consequently, has affected the ways in which people create and maintain

social connections. In particular, social media has brought new questions to

the field of social capital and, despite widespread interest, the literature has

not always kept pace. Work in this field has focused primarily on understand-

ing the role of social connections formed—or maintained—through the

Internet (Bond et al., 2012; Ellison, Steinfield, & Lampe, 2006; Gibson,

Howard, & Ward, 2000; Kavanaugh & Patterson, 2001; Margetts, John,

Escher, & Reissfelder, 2011; Shah, Kwak, & Holbert, 2001; Wellman, Haase,

Witte, & Hampton, 2001; Williams, 2006). Most of the research assessing the

relationship between these new technologies and social capital assumes that

the ties formed through online platforms carry a similar quantity and quality

of resources (i.e., social capital) to relationships formed offline; however, this

assumption has not been explicitly tested.

The aim of this article is twofold. First, to test the formation of the struc-

tural signatures of social capital online by analyzing online social networks.

Here, we are interested in the relationship between social media and social

capital formation, specifically how connections established via social

media—in this case Twitter—lead to the formation of two specific forms of

social capital, bridging and bonding capital. Our test here is explicitly struc-

tural. We examine the architecture of social networks, but not the content or

quality of the links. As such, it marks a first and necessary test of whether

there is evidence for online social capital. Second, we consider the relative

importance of bridging and bonding capital. This is of special interest because

one of the advantages of ICTs is to connect otherwise unconnected people,

suggesting we might expect to see a different interplay between the two types

of social capital than we see in face-to-face world interactions.