Release:
2018, Vol. 4. №3About the authors:
Elena B. Plotnikova, Cand. Sci. (Hist.), Associate Professor, Head of the Department of Sociology, Perm State University; plotnikova1958@yandex.ru; ORCID: 0000-0003-3599-5215Abstract:
The concept of the social capital in modern scientific discussions is presented in most cases by theoretical approaches to the definition, the mechanisms of its formation, and the choice of methods for operationalizing the “social capital” notion. As a rule, the subject matter of the social capital is focused in surveys of religious, ethnic communities, territories, households, and families. The application of the concept of the “social capital” to industrial production is not so common in Russian studies, while modern literature pays attention to the measurement and evaluation of the social capital in the industrial sector, as well as to its impact on the economic success of the enterprise. The novelty of this article is to consider the social capital in the context of the formation of managerial activity of workers. This study, conducted in a qualitative tradition at enterprises in the industrial sector of the Perm Territory, complements the data from the formalized survey on the forms of social capital and the characteristics of networks.
This study provides information on the content side of the social capital: on what issues do employees interact in different types of networks? What resources are subject to exchange and accumulation? In-depth interviewing revealed such significant resource components of the social capital in industrial enterprises as the state and levels of managerial activity of workers.
As a result of this research, the classification of the network communication of the organizations’ personnel has been developed, which allows revealing the interaction of participants in the labor process when exchanging different types of resources. Formation of the managerial activity of participants in the labor process occurs through interaction at two levels: normative and subjective/agency level. At both levels, the accumulation of resources takes place, which is expressed in the possession of rights that allow workers to be involved in production management. The difference between the normative and the subjective/agency levels is the demonstration of so-called “passive activity” in the first case and the detection (demonstration) of the need and motivational activity of employees based on identifying themselves with the organization through the perception of the goals, norms and values of the organization, in the second place. To increase the subjectivity of employees, participative practices are being introduced at the enterprises under the study. Such practices directly affect not only the economic indicators of the enterprise but also form an employee of a ‘new type’. The social capital of organizations of the industrial sector is becoming an important component of the industrial policy of enterprises.
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