Does Social Capital Play an Important Role in Disaster Recovery?: A Qualitative Study of the 2022 Cianjur Earthquake in Indonesia

Social capital is an asset sourced from within the community that can be mobilized to encourage people to take collective action to achieve specific goals. If managed properly, social capital can have a positive impact on society. Social capital can be utilized to improve the community’s ability to recover after a disaster through collective action, offering support and facilitating community recovery. Various studies have shown that it is not physical and structural factors but social capital that serves as the main engine of long-term recovery after a disaster. Therefore, this research aims to find out and analyze the role of social capital in the recovery process of community survivors of the 2022 Cianjur earthquake. The study used a qualitative method with the Interactive Analysis Model to process and analyze the data. The data is obtained through literature review, observation, and in-depth interviews with 16 informants who were survivors and parties involved during the Cianjur earthquake recovery process. The results showed that social capital is significant in encouraging community-based recovery, enabling financial assistance during recovery, and generating potential conflicts that can constrain recovery. Considering the critical role of social capital in the post-disaster recovery process, the government and other stakeholders need to pay attention and consider how to utilize the role of social capital in the post-disaster recovery process.