The paper investigates whether social capital can affect the standard living of the Italian households based on poverty and social exclusion. The analysis is developed at the regional level through cross-sections based in the year 2002 and in the year 2003. The indices of social capital that we...

It pays for poor households to participate actively in local associations. At low incomes, the returns to social capital are higher than returns to human capital. At higher incomes, the reverse is true

It pays for poor households to participate actively in local associations. At low incomes, the returns to social capital are higher than returns to human capital. At higher incomes, the reverse is true.Grootaert empirically estimates how social capital affects household welfare and poverty in...