Check-writing membership without member contact creates no social capital

Evidence

From the point of view of social connectedness, however, the new organizations are sufficiently different from classic “secondary associations” that we need to invent a new label—perhaps “tertiary associations.” For the vast majority of their members, the only act of membership consists in writing a check for dues or perhaps occasionally reading a newsletter. Few ever attend any meetings of such organizations—many never have meetings at all—and most members are unlikely ever knowingly to encounter any other member. The bond between any two members of the National Wildlife Federation or the National Rifle Association is less like the bond between two members of a gardening club or prayer group and more like the bond between two Yankees fans on opposite coasts (or perhaps two devoted L. L. Bean catalog users): they share some of the same interests, but they are unaware of each other’s existence. Their ties are to common symbols, common leaders, and perhaps common ideals, but not to each other. — Robert D. Putnam, Bowling Alone The Collapse and Revival…, 160

Categorization

• DEFINE: Introduces the ‘tertiary association’ concept as distinct from secondary associations that actually connect members face-to-face.
• XREF: Directly relevant to the reader’s knowledge of social capital theory from Coleman’s ‘Social Capital Creation’ and Putnam’s own earlier chapters. — connects to: Social capital works without assuming individuals share common-oriented goals. — Adelin-Costin Dumitru, Forging the Resistive Republic: Social…, 35; Social capital does not automatically translate into durable political organizations. — Anton Jäger, Hyperpolitics: Extreme Politicization…, 155; Social capital consists of networks, not the trust they generate (+4 more)

Broader Connections

• Social capital consists of networks, not the trust they generate #expands (0.80)
• Group membership can be sustained through embodied co-presence without conversation #contradicts (0.80) — Nina Eliasoph, Avoiding politics, 685
• Group membership hinges on self-categorization, not interaction frequency or shared goals #exemplifies (0.80) — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 2714
• Social capital works without assuming individuals share common-oriented goals. #qualifies (0.75) — Adelin-Costin Dumitru, Forging the Resistive Republic, 35
• Social capital does not automatically translate into durable political organizations. #expands (0.75) — Anton Jäger, Hyperpolitics, 155
• Empty networking reveals outsider status rather than building connections #corroborates (0.75) — Alice E. Marwick, Status Update, 203
• Social capital grows from participation, not prior endowment alone. #corroborates (0.75) — Adelin-Costin Dumitru, Forging the Resistive Republic, 49