Heterogeneity of Sources of Social Capital of Territorial Communities

Abstract

The article examines the issues of sources of social capital of formal and informal institutions of territorial communities. The territorial community is characterized as a special territorial-administrative unit with a partnership-based way of interacting with its population and civic initiative in management. Social capital is examined as a key to strengthening self-organization and sustainable development of a territorial community. In the article, the social capital of a community acts as an indicator of the positive effect of management, economic development, infrastructure development, social coagulation, and political participation in the field. The relevance of the topic under study is argued by the need to strengthen internal ties of territorial communities. The problem of their strengthening is considered through the prism of the general state strategy of military confrontation, which does not provide for the satisfaction of local social and household needs, which are basic capital-generating structures. The author describes formal and informal social institutions as centers of origin of social capital, their place, role and action, which have undergone changes under the influence of socio-political transformations in Ukraine. Formal social institutions play the role of the main ones, in the event of their decline, informal institutions lose the chance for legitimate existence. The phenomenon of informal social institutions is described, the number and manifestations of which have significantly increased in recent years in Ukraine. The question of the feasibility of the activities of informal institutions is raised depending on the purpose of their creation and territorial functioning; the prospects of their positive significance in the formation of social capital of the community. The interaction of formal and informal social institutions, their dominant roles, the place of civic participation and the impact on residents of territorial communities are studied. The prospect of further research into the factors influencing various social institutions as separately operating structures and interacting phenomena is identified.