Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community: New York: Simon und Schuster, 2001. ISBN

Abstract

.In a groundbreaking book based on vast new data, Putnam shows how we have become increasingly disconnected from family, friends, neighbors, and our democratic structures- and how we may reconnect.Putnam warns that our stock of social capital - the very fabric of our connections with each other, has plummeted, impoverishing our lives and communities. Putnam draws on evidence including nearly 500,000 interviews over the last quarter century to show that we sign fewer petitions, belong to fewer organizations that meet, know our neighbors less, meet with friends less frequently, and even socialize with our families less often. We're even bowling alone. More Americans are bowling than ever before, but they are not bowling in leagues. Putnam shows how changes in work, family structure, age, suburban life, television, computers, women's roles and other factors have contributed to this decline. Contents SECTION I: INTRODUCTION CHAPTER 1: Thinking about Social Change in America SECTION II: TRENDS IN CIVIC ENGAGEMENT AND SOCIAL CAPITALCHAPTER 2: Political ParticipationCHAPTER 3: Civic ParticipationCHAPTER 4: Religious ParticipationCHAPTER 5: Connections in the WorkplaceCHAPTER 6: Informal Social ConnectionsCHAPTER 7: Altruism, Volunteering, and PhilanthropyCHAPTER 8: Reciprocity, Honesty, and TrustCHAPTER 9: Against the Tide? Small Groups, Social Movements, and the Net SECTION III: WHY?CHAPTER 10: IntroductionCHAPTER 11: Pressures of Time and MoneyCHAPTER 12: Mobility and SprawlCHAPTER 13: Technology and Mass MediaCHAPTER 14: From Generation to GenerationCHAPTER 15: What Killed Civic Engagement? Summing Up SECTION IV: SO WHAT? (with the assistance of Kristin A. Goss)CHAPTER 16: IntroductionCHAPTER 17: Education and Children's WelfareCHAPTER 18: Safe and Productive NeighborhoodsCHAPTER 19: Economic ProsperityCHAPTER 20: Health and HappinessCHAPTER 21: DemocracyCHAPTER 22: The Dark Side of Social Capital SECTION V: WHAT IS TO BE DONE?CHAPTER 23: Lessons of History: The Gilded Age and the Progressive EraCHAPTER 24: Toward an Agenda for Social Capitalists