This study aims to investigate the role of diversity (ethnic, linguistic and religious) and social inequality in determining social cohesion. By using cross- country data, we have found that social inequality may be more important factor than diversity in determining cohesiveness of a society....

In recent years, international organizations, think-tanks, and the social sciences have contributed to a dramatic expansion in the range of composite indices measuring concepts such as human development, governance, or social capital. This paper discusses challenges faced in the design of...

The term "social development" is used rhetorically in pleas for less focus on "economic development". In that context it is commonly assumed that social development will add to human happiness and more so than economic development does. These claims are checked in an analysis of 141 contemporary...

In recent years, scholars and policymakers have placed growing attention on the issue of aid effectiveness, that is, the efficiency of donor assistance in achieving stated economic and human development objectives. While research has tended to highlight the need for greater capacity building and...

Arjan de Haan and his co-authors are keen to use the ISS Indicators of Social Development (hereafter the ISDs) to show how institutional structuration processes can cause improvements in human well-being, including economic growth (de Haan et al, 2011). Developing this aspiration, though not...

The paper presents a comparative analysis of five cross country composite gender indices. Although there is a relatively high correlation between the indices, the overlap of underlying indicators is low. Country rankings, both at the top and at the bottom have parallels but are quite distinct....

Development practitioners worldwide increasingly recognize the importance of informal institutions -- such as norms of cooperation, non-discrimination, or the role of community oversight in the management of investment activities -- in affecting well-being, poverty, and even economic growth....

In recent years there has been growing interest in including estimates of "intangible" capital, such as knowledge, skills, and institutions, in national asset accounting. In accordance with these efforts, this paper attempts to provide the first worldwide evaluations of "social" institutions,...