DEVELOPMENT

political participation are generally low in all the Eastern
European countries, regardless of Estonia’s higher
indicator for the sustainability of its civil society, in this
field, it lags behind the Czech Republic, as well as Slovenia
and Poland.
Also, based on the European Social Survey (2010)
data, Estonia is among those that lag behind when it
comes to political self-determination and participation
in political parties and civil society organisations, along
with the other Eastern and Central European states
(Figure 2.3.1).
2.3.2
Social capital
Of course, the engagement of the citizens in CSOs is
not only important from the viewpoint of political participation,
for the influence it has on the activities of
the national and local governments, but it also plays an
important role in strengthening society’s general cohesion
– its social capital. Social capital is defined as „features
of social life – networks, norms and trust - that enable
participants to act together more effectively to pursue
shared objectives.” (Putnam 1995: 664-665). Based on
U.S. data, Robert Putnam’s influential work Bowling Alone
(2000) pointed out the role that social capital plays in the
existence of an individual’s democratic experience and
involvement in political life.
The Legatum Prosperity Index (LPI) also includes
indicators about the level of social capital. This input has
two dimensions: firstly, societal cohesion, which is measured
by trust, helpfulness and communication networks,
with participation in volunteer work, and support from
families and community networks also being taken into
consideration; secondly, personal freedom, which includes
freedom of movement, expression and belief, as well as
social tolerance.
The empirical studies of social capital have confirmed
that insufficient social capital is accompanied by
economic hardship. Social capital can be considered a
resource of economic and social wellbeing.
The positions of Estonia and the comparative states,
based on the social capital component of the LPI, is
shown in Table 2.3.2.
We see that the LPI social capital indicator also
confirms the fact that Estonia is at the forefront of the
Eastern European states when it comes to the development
of its civil society, but it still lags behind Scandinavia
and the Central European states. At the same time,
despite the indicators that have improved compared to
2010, participation in charity work and volunteering is
still at a low level in Estonia. Forty percent of Estonians
have provided help to a stranger, which is also a relatively
low indicator.
The existence of support networks has improved –
91% say they have someone to depend on in hard times.
The marriage rate is very low in Estonia, as is the participation
in religious activities.
Comparing the values of the individual components
of social capital in the Baltic states (Table 2.3.3), we see
that the structure and general development level is quite
similar. The role of one’s family and close friends is the
Table 2.3.1
Sustainability of CSOs 2011 (on a scale of 1 to 5, where 1
is the best rating)
Source: USAID
Organisational capacity
Financial viability
Estonia 2.3 2.4 1.7 2.3 1.7 1.6 1.9 2
Poland 2.6 2.7 1.7 2.2 2.2 1.7 2.2 2.2
Czech Republic 3 3.2 2.1 2.4 2.8 2.8 2.4 2.7
Latvia 3 3.3 2.1 2.5 2.3 2.4 3.2 2.7
Slovakia 3 3.4 2.5 2.5 2.8 2.3 2.4 2.7
Slovenia 3.8 4.4 3.5 3.5 3.3 3.6 3.7 2.7
Lithuania 2.9 3.2 2 3.4 2.2 3 2.6 2.8
Average of the
transition countries
2.9 3.2 2.2 2.7 2.5 2.5 2.6 2.7
Table 2.3.2
Rankings of the countries based on the social capital
sub-index (ranks in the corresponding year)
Advocacy
Service provision
Legal environment
Infrastructure
Public image
General sustainability
2012 2011 2010
Denmark 2. 2. 2.
New Zealand 4. 3. 3.
Finland 5. 6. 6.
Netherlands 6. 5. 5.
Ireland 7. 10. 10.
Switzerland 11. 13. 13.
Austria 14. 16. 16.
Israel 22. 24. 24.
Taiwan 24. 29. 29.
Estonia 30. 46. 43.
Slovenia 36. 33. 33.
Singapore 39. 32. 32.
Czech Republic 45. 35. 35.
Poland 46. 22. 22.
Slovakia 47. 45. 45.
Lithuania 49. 66. 49.
South Korea 51. 52. 52.
Uruguay 55. 56. 56.
Costa Rica 66. 42. 42.
Chile 69. 62. 62.
Hungary 79. 77. 77.
Latvia 86. 96. 92.
Source: The 2012 Legatum Prosperity Index (LPI)
Estonian Human Development Report 2012/2013
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