Final answer:
Social capital embodies the nonmonetary resources, including trust, networks, and reciprocal relationships available within a social network, crucial for gaining society-wide benefits like improved political participation and community development.
Step-by-step explanation:
The knowledge and other resources, as well as the support, trust, and other relational benefits that are available to members of a social network, can be adequately defined as social capital. This conception of capital extends beyond the tangible economic capital, like money or assets, and includes societal elements like networks of individuals, shared cultural knowledge, mutual acquaintances, and a community's norms of reciprocity. French sociologist Pierre Bourdieu's theory identified and elaborated upon the various forms of capital, including social, cultural, and symbolic capital - each contributing collectively to an individual's overall power and position within society.
The impacts of social capital are far-reaching, having a stand-out presence in political participation, where communities with higher social capital display characteristics like lower crime rates, higher trust in government, and a greater propensity for civic involvement like voting. Enhancing social capital can lead to more robust political engagement, as demonstrated in international studies assessing the relationship between social capital and political participation in countries like Japan, Mexico, Chile, Peru, and Argentina.