University of Bergen
SBA Economics Professor Sherman Folland is working with faculty at University of Bergen, Norway, on a research project studying Social Capital that was funded by a research grant from the Norwegian Research Council.
SC is the value of a culture’s social connectedness, measured by attributes such as the quality and quantity of social interactions, and levels of trust and caring for others. (As a country, Norway ranks among the highest in SC while the U.S., currently in the middle of the pack, suffers from declining SC.)
Specifically, Folland asks the question: “Does social capital contribute to less health-risky behaviors?” Folland’s preliminary findings, published in the Health Economic journal, indicates that smoking, excessive drinking and overeating tend to diminish when a person has a strong social network.