THE VIETNAMESE COMMUNITY IN POLAND: AN INVESTIGATION OF SOCIAL CAPITAL

Abstract

Unlike previous migration studies that extensively concerned the adaptation issue, this study focuses on the social bases, investigating the configuration of the social capital of the Vietnamese community in Poland. It mainly concerns two main components of social capital: social networks and social trust. The data for empirical analyses in this study are employed from a research project examining the integration of the Vietnamese into the political sphere in Polish society. The project applies a mixed-research method design to collect quantitative data through an original social survey with 347 respondents and qualitative data from 15 semi-structured interviews. The findings reveal the social capital of the Vietnamese in Poland with a striking characteristic of a high level of bonding ties, primarily relying on close relations such as family or ethnic organizations to seek support and placing a very high level of confidence in family members. Nevertheless, this study also uncovers the accumulation of bridging social capital through developing out-group contacts and participating in cross-ethnic associations among the Vietnamese. The results of this study have significant implications for understanding the attachment tendency of the Vietnamese in Polish society.

https://doi.org/10.26459/hueunijssh.v133i6B.7296
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