Social Capital and technical efficiency of wheat small farmers in the Bío Bío Region (Chile)

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the determinants of technical efficiency of wheat small farmers in Bío Bío Region, especially to investigate the relation between social capital, measured through participation in organizations, and technical efficiency. Using information of the VII Agricultural and Forestry Survey, a stochastic frontier production function was estimated. The results show that age, level of education, size of the farmer activity, degree of specialization, technology and agro-climatic zones are able to explain individual technical efficiency levels. Special importance receives participation in organizations in the achievement of higher technical efficiency levels, principally in low productivities zones. Specifically, participation in cooperatives deeply explains the improvements in efficiency in most of the cases. Characteristics related to the business model and productive aims that they exhibit, could help to explain these results.Technical efficiency, Stochastic frontier production function, Participation in organizations, Social capital.

Participación en Organizaciones Sociales en Chile. ¿Una Alternativa para Mejorar el Bienestar Económico de los Hogares?

El propósito de este trabajo es conocer los determinantes de la participación en organizaciones sociales en Chile, y evaluar si la participación ha conducido a una mejora en el bienestar económico de los hogares, utilizando el enfoque del capital social. Se estimaron modelos de participación e ingreso en el caso de las organizaciones económicas y vecinales, y un modelo de ecuaciones simultáneas en el caso de las organizaciones recreativo-culturales, debido a la existencia de endogeneidad del ingreso en la ecuación de participación. El modelo simultáneo propuesto incluye estimadores Two Stage Probit Least Squares, adecuados para corregir los sesgos derivados de la simultaneidad cuando una variable dependiente es dicotómica y la otra continua. Los resultados indican que la edad, educación, tenencia de una vivienda propia, zona de residencia y la percepción con respecto a la seguridad y convivencia entre los vecinos tienen una fuerte incidencia en la probabilidad de participar, y que existe una relación positiva entre ingreso y asociatividad económica.Capital Social, Organizaciones de la Sociedad Civil, Efectos en el Bienestar

What influence the individual decision to participate? A microeconomic social capital approach for Civil Society organizations in Chile

In defining the guidelines of central governments, regional and local, the participation of civil society has been incorporated as a guiding principle in the construction of development strategies. This initiative involves promoting the participation of people and strengthening civil organizations. To face this challenge it should study the process of formation of civil organizations. The objective of this work is to study the problem of participation from a microeconomic perspective, using the approach of social capital to determine the factors influencing the decision to participate. In order to achieve this objective information of CASEN 2003 was used to estimate a Probit Model. The results show lower levels of participation to the extent that the opportunity costs grow with individual incomes higher, more children at home and higher levels of unemployment. Participation is higher in the older population and level of education, which is related to increased capacity of expression and negotiation. Finally higher levels of participation are observed in the population belongs to some native people, married people, households who have own house and living in rural areas, which is associated with the possibility that social networks are specific communities.Social capital, Participation, Civil Society Organizations

Determinantes de la Adopción Voluntaria del Seguro de Cesantía en Chile

The aim of this paper is to present evidence of the main factors that influence the voluntary decision of the assurance of unemployment in Chile. To carry out this purpose, a model Logit Binomial was estimated using information of the Survey of Socioeconomic Characterization (CASEN) 2003. The results support some theoretical arguments that influence this type of decisions. The individuals who present smaller probability of taking an insurance are workers with an educational low level and without formal training, individuals in advanced age, individuals with fewer family responsibilities, with a major seniority, individuals who can generate another type of income, workers who receive a major level of social assistance, workers who belong to the micro and small enterprise and those that work in Transport and Communications and Commercial Sector. These results are interesting, because the persons that have some of these characteristics could confront larger unemployment risk. In this context, it is necessary the intervention of the authority across incentives or forcing to the people to take insurance in order that the more vulnerable persons adopt this mechanism for social protection

Capital social y eficiencia técnica de los pequeños agricultores de trigo de la Región del Bío Bío

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the determinants of technical efficiency of wheat small farmers in Bío Bío Region, especially to investigate the relation between social capital, measured through participation in organizations, and technical efficiency. Using information of the VII Agricultural and Forestry Survey, a stochastic frontier production function was estimated. The results show that age, level of education, size of the farmer activity, degree of specialization, technology and agro-climatic zones are able to explain individual technical efficiency levels. Special importance receives participation in organizations in the achievement of higher technical efficiency levels, principally in low productivities zones. Specifically, participation in cooperatives deeply explains the improvements in efficiency in most of the cases. Characteristics related to the business model and productive aims that they exhibit, could help to explain these results

Participación en Organizaciones de la Sociedad Civil en Chile. ¿Una Alternativa para Mejorar el Bienestar Económico?

The goal of this research is to find the determinants of individual participation on civil society organizations in Chile through a social capital approach, and to evaluate whether there is a relationship between participation and economic welfare. Several regressions that correct for double causality bias between participation and income were run. Econometric results point out that individual perceptions with respect to their neighbors and neighborhoods and the number years at school have a strong effect on participation. At the same time, they found a positive relationship between household economic welfare and participation in the case of economic organizations

¿Qué influye en la decisión individual de participar? Un enfoque microeconómico del capital social para el caso de las organizaciones de la Sociedad Civil en Chile

In defining the guidelines of central governments, regional and local, the participation of civil society has been incorporated as a guiding principle in the construction of development strategies. This initiative involves promoting the participation of people and strengthening civil organizations. To face this challenge it should study the process of formation of civil organizations. The objective of this work is to study the problem of participation from a microeconomic perspective, using the approach of social capital to determine the factors influencing the decision to participate. In order to achieve this objective information of CASEN 2003 was used to estimate a Probit Model. The results show lower levels of participation to the extent that the opportunity costs grow with individual incomes higher, more children at home and higher levels of unemployment. Participation is higher in the older population and level of education, which is related to increased capacity of expression and negotiation. Finally higher levels of participation are observed in the population belongs to some native people, married people, households who have own house and living in rural areas, which is associated with the possibility that social networks are specific communities

Participación en Organizaciones de la Sociedad Civil en Chile. ¿Una Alternativa para Mejorar el Bienestar Económico?

The goal of this research is to find the determinants of individual participation on civil society organizations in Chile through a social capital approach, and to evaluate whether there is a relationship between participation and economic welfare. Several regressions that correct for double causality bias between participation and income were run. Econometric results point out that individual perceptions with respect to their neighbors and neighborhoods and the number years at school have a strong effect on participation. At the same time, they found a positive relationship between household economic welfare and participation in the case of economic organizations

¿Qué influye en la decisión individual de participar? Un enfoque microeconómico del capital social para el caso de las organizaciones de la Sociedad Civil en Chile

In defining the guidelines of central governments, regional and local, the participation of civil society has been incorporated as a guiding principle in the construction of development strategies. This initiative involves promoting the participation of people and strengthening civil organizations. To face this challenge it should study the process of formation of civil organizations. The objective of this work is to study the problem of participation from a microeconomic perspective, using the approach of social capital to determine the factors influencing the decision to participate. In order to achieve this objective information of CASEN 2003 was used to estimate a Probit Model. The results show lower levels of participation to the extent that the opportunity costs grow with individual incomes higher, more children at home and higher levels of unemployment. Participation is higher in the older population and level of education, which is related to increased capacity of expression and negotiation. Finally higher levels of participation are observed in the population belongs to some native people, married people, households who have own house and living in rural areas, which is associated with the possibility that social networks are specific communities

Capital social y eficiencia técnica de los pequeños agricultores de trigo de la Región del Bío Bío

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the determinants of technical efficiency of wheat small farmers in Bío Bío Region, especially to investigate the relation between social capital, measured through participation in organizations, and technical efficiency. Using information of the VII Agricultural and Forestry Survey, a stochastic frontier production function was estimated. The results show that age, level of education, size of the farmer activity, degree of specialization, technology and agro-climatic zones are able to explain individual technical efficiency levels. Special importance receives participation in organizations in the achievement of higher technical efficiency levels, principally in low productivities zones. Specifically, participation in cooperatives deeply explains the improvements in efficiency in most of the cases. Characteristics related to the business model and productive aims that they exhibit, could help to explain these results