Lyda Judson Hanifan (February 12, 1879 – December 11, 1932), better known as L. J. Hanifan, is credited with introducing the concept of

social capital Social capital is "the networks of relationships among people who live and work in a particular society, enabling that society to function effectively". It involves the effective functioning of social groups through interpersonal relationships ...

Robert Putnam Robert David Putnam (born 1941) is an American political scientist specializing in comparative politics. He is the Peter and Isabel Malkin Professor of Public Policy at the Harvard University John F. Kennedy School of Government. Putnam develo ...

in his book, ''

Bowling Alone ''Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community'' is a 2000 nonfiction book by Robert D. Putnam. It was developed from his 1995 essay entitled "Bowling Alone: America's Declining Social Capital". Putnam surveys the decline of soci ...

'' (2000) credits a 1916 paper by Hanifan as the first recorded instance of the term. Hanifan also authored a book published in 1920 that contains a chapter entitled "Social Capital".

Biography

Hanifan was born February 12, 1879, in the timbering camp of Cubana,

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

and went on to higher education at

West Virginia Wesleyan College West Virginia Wesleyan College is a private college in Buckhannon, West Virginia. It has an enrollment of about 1,400 students from 35 U.S. states and 26 countries. The school was founded in 1890 by the West Virginia Conference of the Methodist E ...

. He graduated from

West Virginia University West Virginia University (WVU) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Morgantown, West Virginia. Its other campuses are those of the West Virginia University Institute of Technology in Beckley, Potomac State College ...

with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

degree on October 21, 1907, with no

major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

listed. In the years following, he attended the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...

and received a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

degree from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

in 1909. He returned to West Virginia where he served school systems in Elkins, Belington,

Charleston Charleston most commonly refers to: * Charleston, South Carolina * Charleston, West Virginia, the state capital * Charleston (dance) Charleston may also refer to: Places Australia * Charleston, South Australia Canada * Charleston, Newfoundlan ...

, and Welch, and for nearly 10 years was state supervisor of rural schools. Hanifan authored two books and a number of pamphlets on rural education. According to Robert Putnam, "the first known use of the concept (of social capital) was not by some cloistered theoretician, but by a practical reformer of the

Progressive Era The Progressive Era (late 1890s – late 1910s) was a period of widespread social activism and political reform across the United States focused on defeating corruption, monopoly, waste and inefficiency. The main themes ended during Am ...

—L. J. Hanifan, state supervisor of rural schools in West Virginia. Writing in 1916 to urge the importance of community involvement for successful schools, Hanifan invoked the idea of 'social capital' to explain why." "Hanifan's account of social capital," Putnam continues, "anticipated virtually all of the crucial elements in later interpretations, but his conceptual invention apparently attracted no notice from other

social commentator Social commentary is the act of using rhetorical means to provide commentary on social, cultural, political, or economic issues in a society. This is often done with the idea of implementing or promoting change by informing the general populace ab ...

s and disappeared without a trace" for the next 84 years. Hanifan defined social capital as:

The tangible substances
hat A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
count for most in the daily lives of people: namely good will, fellowship, sympathy, and social intercourse among the individuals and families who make up a social unit. . .. The individual is helpless socially, if left to himself. If he comes into contact with his neighbor, and they with other neighbors, there will be an accumulation of social capital, which may immediately satisfy his social needs and which may bear a social potentiality sufficient to the substantial improvement of
living conditions Habitability refers to the adequacy of an environment for human living. Where housing is concerned, there are generally local ordinances which define habitability. If a residence complies with those laws it is said to be habitable. In extreme e ...
in the whole community. The community as a whole will benefit by the cooperation of all its parts, while the individual will find in his associations the advantages of the help, the
sympathy Sympathy is the perception of, understanding of, and reaction to the distress or need of another life form. According to David Hume, this sympathetic concern is driven by a switch in viewpoint from a personal perspective to the perspective of ano ...
, and the fellowship of his neighbors.

In December 1917, State

Superintendent Superintendent may refer to: *Superintendent (police), Superintendent of Police (SP), or Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), a police rank *Prison warden or Superintendent, a prison administrator *Superintendent (ecclesiastical), a church exec ...

of Free Schools H. P. Shawkey appointed Hanifan as secretary to the New School Code Commission. The commission developed key provisions of the public education system in West Virginia. The Commission report presented to the

West Virginia Legislature The West Virginia Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of West Virginia. A bicameral legislative body, the legislature is split between the upper Senate and the lower House of Delegates. It was established under Article VI o ...

in January, 1919, resulted in legislation adopted in February, 1920, establishing the state

board of education A board of education, school committee or school board is the board of directors or board of trustees of a school, local school district or an equivalent institution. The elected council determines the educational policy in a small regional are ...

, creating the 10-month school term, raising teacher's salaries, mandating compulsory attendance for pupils age 6-16, authorizing

junior high school A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school ...

s, and among other provisions. Hanifan married Mary Pearl Agee (1891–1948) on March 26, 1913, and they had one child, Mary Elkin Hanifan. His father was John Hanifan, married three times, his mother being Sara Taylor. Lyda had five full siblings, Lorenzo Dow, French W. and Stark W. (twins), Floyd R., and Luetta Hanifan. Also, ten half siblings. After serving as Superintendent of Schools in

Welch, West Virginia Welch is a city located in McDowell County in the State of West Virginia, United States. The population was 3,590 at the 2020 census, however the 2021 census estimate put the population at 1,914, due to the McDowell Prison complex in the north ...

, Hanifan moved to

Paducah, Kentucky Paducah ( ) is a home rule-class city in and the county seat of McCracken County, Kentucky. The largest city in the Jackson Purchase region, it is located at the confluence of the Tennessee and the Ohio rivers, halfway between St. Louis, Missour ...

, where he served as Superintendent of Schools until his death.

Works

The following are all of the currently known publications of L. J. Hanifan: * *Hanifan, L. J., Ed. (1913). District Supervision: West Virginia and Oregon as Examples. National Society for the Study of Education, Twelfth Yearbook. Chicago, University of Chicago Press. *Hanifan, L. J. (1913). A Handbook Containing Suggestions and Programs for Community Social Gatherings at Rural School Houses Charleston, WV, State Department of Education. *Hanifan, L. J. (1913). A Supplement to the State Manual of the Elementary Course of Study. Charleston, WV, Department of Free Schools. *Hanifan, L. J. (1914). Facts and Fallacies About Consolidation of Schools in West Virginia. Charleston, WV, Department of Free Schools: 16. *Hanifan, L. J. (1914). "Social Centers and Rural Schools." Atlantic Educational Journal 10: 62-65. *Hanifan, L. J. (1916). Evening Classes for West Virginia Elementary Schools. Charleston, WV, Department of Free Schools. * * *Hanifan, L. J. (1920). The Difficulties of Consolidation. The Consolidated Rural School. L. W. Rapeer. New York, Charles Scribner's Sons: 475-496.

References

External links

Full Text of ''The Community Center''Hanifan's 1916 journal article
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hanifan, L. J. People from Randolph County, West Virginia 1879 births 1932 deaths West Virginia Wesleyan College alumni West Virginia University alumni University of Chicago alumni Harvard University alumni Educators from West Virginia Writers from West Virginia American education writers People from Welch, West Virginia People from Paducah, Kentucky Economists from Kentucky Economists from West Virginia