DOES SOCIAL CAPITAL AFFECT LOCAL GOVERNMENT PERFORMANCE IN NORWAY?

Studies suggest the existence of an empirical relation between social capital and government performance. We employ a multiple operationalization scheme to reveal whether such a connection is the case of Norwegian municipalities. We conduct six regression and panel data analyses using four different data sets. These confirm government revenue to be the most important determinant of performance. Two analyses support the social capital claim, with signs that volunteer activities and local election turnouts affect government performance positively. Still, the overall impression is that social capital has limited effect on local government performance in the Norwegian case. This suggests that the significance of social capital is highly context dependent. Norwegian municipalities are governed within strict national laws and regulations, and might be more standardized in their operation than local government bodies elsewhere. In addition, the social capital level in Norway is relatively high. In this context, it is plausible that variation in social capital becomes less important when seen in relation to local government performance.