The “Golden Age” of post-war European economic growth has witnessedextraordinary changes not only in the economic, but also in the social andcultural outlook of Western European societies. Eric Hobsbawm’s statementthat “[h]istorians of the twentieth century in the third millennium will...

Types of capital which determine the ability of individuals, ofcommunities and of nations to avoid poverty and social exclusion areanalysed. This analysis draws on changing explanations of economicgrowth and the recent literature on social capital. Five forms of capitalare distinguished –...