The book suggests that social capital is a feature of the community in terms of their norms, mutual trust, reciprocal obligations, and social networks. When successful, development organizations can harness the social capital and embody it in village or community organizations and subsequently guide these organizations to participate and engage in collective action for poverty alleviation and enhancing community welfare. For our in-depth case study, we utilize varied quantitative and qualitative research methods, including anthropological research and the use of control villages for comparison. The authors also document the importance of understanding history and culture for the process of harnessing social capital.

This book is about the harnessing of social capital, formalized as village or community organizations, to guide and facilitate collective action for attaining poverty alleviation in particular and enhancing community well-being in general.