Social Capital
Social capital is a set of shared values that allows individuals to work together in a group to effectively achieve a common purpose.
Social capital is maintained though symbolic exchanges and transactional interactions.
Community, Connections, and Capital
Fieldwork Position
Community Liaison
As the community liaison, I was tasked to bring visibility to the services the agency offers and connect with people that could attend events, collaborate, and/or send referrals. I developed a plan to make at least ten community connects, to attend or plan three events, and to develop weekly content and social media posts. Within four weeks, I was able to attend two events and plan one event, in addition to creating content for weekly social media posts.
Social Capital and Human Capital.
Me pictured with Tiana Von Johnson, a business and mindset coach. I learned business strategies and connected with potential community referral resources.
Community Connections
The most important lesson I’ve learned over the last month is when you learn how to help others, you help yourself. Instead of trying to sell the importance of mental health services, I started to talk about the benefits of counseling and how the agency could be of assistance to others. If I met a potential client, I made sure our interaction included ways therapy has helped me or what research says about the benefits of therapy on self-esteem and communication skills. If I met a potential referral source or community leader, I would tailor my message to focus on how I could be of service to them, their target audience, or how we could plan an event together. I rarely mentioned my education or what the agency needed, I always focused on how I could help. By giving and being willing to be of service, I always benefited in some way.
Learn and Lead
During my fieldwork experience, human capital is the second most used form of capital after social capital. I had to research more effective ways to communicate and market and develop strategies. This was important because after building social capital it was important to be able to maintain these relationships, through effective communication. For example: after the open house event, I sent thank you messages to each attendee and made sure I followed up with the liaison from the psychiatric hospital, to make sure she received the referral information.
Social and Human Capital.
Learning about Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation in mental health treatment. I learned new information and established a relationship with a potential referral source.