Methodological support for social capital research in organizations

Introduction. The purpose of this article is to present a synthesis of the theoretical, methodological and empirical research findings pertaining to the social capital in organisations, and as well as to describe the diagnostic tools used in its assessment. According to the concept of social capital in organisations as a unified semantic space encompassing the employees of various organisations, the key components of social capital in organisations that can be quantified are identified. These components are trust, commitment to goals and values, the constitutive interaction norms, and the organisational reputation. Methods. A theoretical and methodological analysis revealed the main principles of social capital study. This analysis allowed us to create a generalised model for the study of social capital. Based on the aforementioned model, validation methodology for measuring social capital including a calculation of the consolidation index was proposed (IXCO). Results. The model demonstrates that the principal components can be qualitatively and quantitatively characterised, and social capital accumulation may have both positive and negative implications. The concept of “social capital consolidation in organizations” is introduced, reflecting the unity of its main components. This study reveals the differences in the structure of social capital depending on the socio-demographic characteristics of organisations' personnel. Furthermore, empirical studies are conducted to confirm the theoretical and methodological approaches to the study of social capital in organisations in different spheres of activity, including business, education, as well as in issue of generational differences.