By Zulfikhri Sapari
Relationship is part of developing social capital. If a person has many connections of friends or people that they know and at the same time can give benefits to them, is called social capital. Social capital is the expansion of a persons social network when there are more people in our network, the better for ones’ personal and professional growth.
For example, graduates from the university have many Facebook friends who could be seniors already working, thus making it easier for him or her to seek employment with their recommendations. Social capital can be divided into two types which are bridging and bonding.
Bridging is the weakest tie of a relationship. It brings people or groups together that formerly did not know each other based on trust, norms, and networks. Then, it will provide useful information, but not emotional support. For instances, using LinkedIn where most people use it for a certain purpose. LinkedIn had given mutual benefits for both parties. Graduates from university will use LinkedIn to look out for people from a company who may offer them a job according to their qualification.
Meanwhile, people from a company will use LinkedIn as a platform to find suitable candidates for their organisation.
Bonding is strong ties relationship that reinforces group cohesion. It brings people who already know each other closer. This kind of relationship tends to create new knowledge because people are already comfortable talking to each other. Thus, it supports emotional and socialisation at the same time. For example, usage of WhatsApp.
This is because the friend list in WhatsApp are extracted from our phone contacts. So, most of the friends in WhatsApp are those close with us such as family and friends. By creating a group in WhatsApp, they tend to share new knowledge and information via images, text, and videos. This kind of relationship gives mutual benefits for both parties.
Social capital is usually used in business, virtual world, and education sector. In business, Barnes had determined that social capital is needed for exchanging transactions purposes. The buyer and seller need to have good bonding to make the transactions a success. In addition, having a broad network to expand the contacts selling products and services. They also can share sales tips and marketing information.
Barnes added in her writings that social capital also is needed in online game environments via virtual world. It may be bridging social capital as it is the loose of connections between strangers that lead to diversity in the social network. For example, the group called World of Warcraft in which it differs by goals, size, and membership. The membership consists of about 40 people that typically lasts between two to eight hours. To perform well, each player must act in the best interest of group members.
Lastly, in the education sector. Getting knowledge through education requires students to develop social capital. Students use social networks to maintain personal relationships with friends and even with the teacher. The researcher had found that, the students often use Facebook to keep in touch with friends and to maintain a relationship.***
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