Neighborhood-Based Informal Solidarity : Effects on Well-being and Sense of Community in Two Urban Contexts: Jönköping (Sweden) and Singen am Hohentwiel (Germany)

This thesis explores how informal, neighborhood-based solidarity is experienced and how it affects individual well-being and Sense of Community (SOC). Drawing on semi-structured interviews with ten participants involved in local mutual aid practices, the study employed reflexive thematic analysis informed by McMillan and Chavis’s four SOC dimensions. Findings show that informal help is experienced as a quiet, routine part of daily life grounded in “silent reciprocity.” Even small gestures (e.g., collecting groceries, ad-hoc childcare) generate emotional security, reduce feelings of isolation, and foster membership, influence, integration of needs, and shared emotional connection within the neighborhood. Participants described a reinforcing loop: helping behavior models pro-social norms, which in turn encourages others to engage, strengthening local trust and resilience.