| Аннотация | The concept of social capital has gained considerable popularity in the social sciences, as well as in practical politics on a national and international scale. Its heuristic potential is confirmed by numerous studies demonstrating the positive impact of the level and types of social capital on a wide range of economic, social and political phenomena, and especially the use of the concept of social capital to study economic growth and development issues. However, there is no universally accepted definition of social capital, and there is no unanimous opinion concerning the ways of measuring it. The paper contains a review of the current status of the theoretical field of the concept; it shows that researchers from different countries are interested in the impact of social capital on economic growth and development at the regional level. Specific comparative studies in different countries and regions strongly support the presence of a correlation that proves social capital is one of the powerful driving forces of development. However, since the majority of studies on the effects of social capital on economic development are concentrated in the developed countries of Western Europe and the USA, it is important to evaluate the potential of this approach in the countries of post-Communist development that have different experience, in particular, in Russia. In this regard, the article points out that there is a clear lack of such studies with regard to Russia’s regions, where there are only occasional fragmentary attempts to study social capital. The aim of the paper is to substantiate on the theoretical basis and to indicate the prerequisites for empirical studies on the effects of social capital of regions on their economic growth and development, especially under the conditions of the general economic and structural crisis. |
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