This is a first-time exploration of some complex issues, whose meaning is open to interpretation. The survey points to some strengths and weaknesses now, but the full implications of this research await more analysis and broader discussion within the community. The survey builds on the work of Harvard Prof. Robert D. Putnam, who has theorized that declining civic ties among Americans are decreasing our quality of education, physical health and happiness, neighborhood safety, the responsiveness of democratic institutions and economic development. Putnam believes the level of a community s social capital directly correlates to the health and happiness of its people. Dr. Claudia Coulton, co-director of Case Western Reserve University s Center on Urban Poverty and Social Change which analyzed local survey data on behalf of The Cleveland Foundation said, The survey s greatest value is not the subjective comparisons made between communities, but the difference in levels of social capital within Greater Cleveland.
Social trust is also much lower in Cleveland than in the suburbs.
Trust of other groups was somewhat lower among Hispanics. Looking at the groups to which people belong, a form of social capital known as associational involvement, levels of participation were equally high among residents of Cleveland and the suburbs. Participation in formal groups was especially high among African-Americans. Informal social interaction measures daily contact and activity among friends. Generally, this type of interaction declines with age, with people up to 25 years of age having the most routine informal social activity.