Working Paper 32. Exploring Linkages between Maternal Social Capital and Children's Nutritional Status in Andhra Pradesh.
Abstract
Debates about social capital — particularly encouraging and harnessing women's social networks — have particular relevance in the Indian and Andhra Pradesh contexts given major donor-funded initiatives to establish women's self-help groups (SHGs). These programmes have inter alia been used to channel microfinance, improve women's income-generating opportunities, facilitate family planning coverage, and monitor social service provision. The objectives of this paper are therefore to: a) provide a critical discussion of the concept of social capital within the context of the sociopolitical dynamics of Indian society; b) use baseline data from the Young Lives Study conducted in Andhra Pradesh in South India to describe patterns of maternal social capital; c) explore the association between facets of maternal social capital and chronic malnutrition in children aged 6-17.9 months (referred to in brief as 'one-year-olds') - a major public health concern in the state; and d) reflect on the policy implications of our findings.
Citation
Galab, S., Antony, P., Wilson, I., Jones, N., McCoy, A., Raju, D. S. R., Reddy, P. P., Working Paper 32. Exploring Linkages between Maternal Social Capital and Children’s Nutritional Status in Andhra Pradesh, 2006, London, UK; Save the Children UK, 48 pp.
Links