ABSTRACT
The emphasis of the social in the creation and shaping of social capital is important, thus making it a truly sociological concept. Also the intuitive appeal of the importance of the concepts of social capital and trust seems clear: the analytical concepts of social capital and trust do not seem burdened by the rigidity of classical sociological conceptual schemes, such as social class, power or stratification. The basic argument with the concept of social capital lies in its asset nature that inheres in all social relations and networks. Yet the concept finds its manifestation in contradicting ways in the literature (see, for example Coleman 1990; Putnam et al. 1993; Fukuyama 1995; Seligman 1997).
