In Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community, Robert D. Putnam chronicles the decline of civic engagement and social connectedness in the late 20th-century United States and highlights the importance of renewing these forms of social capital for the sake of individual, societal, and democratic health. Putnam, a political science professor and former dean, has the expertise to contribute this work to the academic literature in social science. Originally published in 2000, the book became a national bestseller. In the academic world, the book became a seminal one, widely cited, and Putnam was awarded the Johan Skytte Prize in Political Science in 2006, largely for this work and his efforts to increase civic engagement. All quotations and references in this guide are from the 2001 paperback edition.

Summary

Drawing upon organizational records, survey reports, time diaries, and consumer spending, Putnam details a comprehensive decline in American communal life in the last third of the 20th century. Because of this decline, the US has a dwindling stock of social capital, which is essential to the health of American society and politics.

He begins with the decline in political participation, noting that not only voting but all forms of political participation have decreased. As a result, political institutions are hollowed out, and public discourse is less civil. Active involvement in face-to-face civic organizations, such as the Parent Teacher Association (PTA), has substantially slipped in this period as well. New civic organizations, such as many environmental groups, are professionally and centrally run and therefore do not enrich social capital. Religious institutions, previously a critical source of social capital in the US, have experienced a 25% decline in attendance and participation in this period. Evangelicals are an exception to this trend but historically have not been as involved with the broader community as other denominations. Workplace connections have deteriorated in this period too, with union membership down and the percentage of professionals joining organizations decreased. What is more, Americans are connecting with one another less informally, too. They entertain one another almost 50% less, vacation together less frequently, and dine together less. Putnam highlights the trend in bowling: Americans still bowl a lot in the 1990s, but they are much less likely to join bowling leagues with the social commitment that entails.

As a percentage of income, charitable contributions are down in the 1990s. However, volunteering has increased. Similarly, Putnam argues that the nature of volunteering has changed, and people are less likely to engage in collective projects. They volunteer individually or to work one-on-one, and such commitments are more fragile.

Collective forms of participation in politics, religion, and other spheres have sharply decreased while individual actions, such as writing a letter, have not seen the same levels of decline. People are going it alone, forsaking the community for individualism. As a result, the reciprocity upon which civil society depends is in jeopardy. Reciprocity, or the willingness to do something for someone with no expectation of immediate reward but the understanding someone else will return the favor down the road, depends on social trust. That too decreased substantially in this period.

Putnam emphasizes that social capital has waxed and waned in American history: Prior to this dip, the US had experienced an increase in social capital. He repeatedly emphasizes the pattern of rising social capital after World War II followed by a plateau and then decline in the last third of the 20th century.

After chronicling the decline in this period, he uses statistical analysis to search for explanations. The most significant explanation is generational succession or replacement. The long civic generation, born between 1910 and 1940, is gradually being replaced by Baby Boomers, born between 1950 and 1964, and Generation X, born between 1965 and 1980. The latter generations are not as civically and socially engaged as the long civic generation. That latter generation experienced World War II, which required communal sacrifice. In contrast, the two younger generations are more individualistic. Putnam attributes about half of the decline in social capital to this factor, but it is not the only explanation since the decline in social capital is evident in all age categories. Electronic entertainment, specifically television, bears considerable blame, approximately 25%, as well. Importantly, the long civic generation is the last one to grow up without television. Television keeps people at home and provides an individual form of entertainment. Its rise coincides precisely with the decline in social capital. Putnam assigns limited responsibility to other factors, such as suburban sprawl and the commuting time it spawns, financial and time pressures, and other unknown factors.

Next, Putnam considers the potential impact of such a sharp decline in social capital. Drawing upon secondary sources, he relays the benefits of social capital in several areas, such as education, safety, and the economy. Children are more likely to thrive in communities with high amounts of social capital, and educational outcomes are better in such states. Safety and lower crime rates are associated with high amounts of social capital as well. While social connections clearly advantage individuals economically, Putnam argues that social capital results in more economic prosperity for the community, too. Lower crime rates and good educational systems, for example, add up to higher housing values.

Social capital provides health benefits, both physically and psychologically. Arguing that the benefits of social connectedness are akin to those from quitting smoking, Putnam cites multiple studies that associate good health at the community level with social capital. Additionally, people are happier in societies with high amounts of social capital. Indicative of this fact, Putnam observes the high suicide rates of young people, who are the least socially connected in the 1990s. In the 1950s, older people were more likely to commit suicide.

Most importantly, social capital is critical to the functioning of a democracy. Active participation in the community provides individuals with cooperative attitudes and cultivates trust and reciprocity. An actively engaged citizenry demands better government. Without the ability to combine voices with others, individuals are left politically powerless, and democracy withers. In short, it is imperative that Americans refurbish their stock of social capital.

Comparing the end of the 20th century to the end of the 19th century, Putnam finds a model for such refurbishment with the Progressives. In the late 19th century, social capital ebbed, and resultingly, there were high crime rates, poor levels of education, urban poverty and decay, and political corruption. The Progressives did not seek to restore earlier forms of social capital as they would no longer accommodate an increasingly urban society. Instead, they created new organizations, such as the PTA and Boy Scouts, to fit the times. Putnam wants to emulate that example. The early 21st century calls for new types of institutions. He encourages a multi-faceted approach to rebuilding social capital and sets ambitious goals for its renewal by 2010.