Open AccessFunction of Social Capital Embedded in Religious Communities at Times of Disaster: Cases of Disaster Relief Activity by a Muslim Community and a Soka Gakkai Community in Japan
Author(s) -
Nobuyuki Asai
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
journal of disaster research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.332
H-Index - 18
eISSN - 1883-8030
pISSN - 1881-2473
DOI - 10.20965/jdr.2018.p1323
Subject(s) - viewpoints , social capital , buddhism , emergency management , function (biology) , capital (architecture) , social function , sociology , political science , geography , social science , law , archaeology , art , evolutionary biology , visual arts , biology
In studies of disasters, cases of religious communities providing support to victims at times of disaster have been reported. Such support can be understood as a function of social capital within religious communities. This paper considers the case studies of disaster relief activities provided by a Muslim community and a Soka Gakkai Buddhist community in Japan after the Great East Japan Earthquake in 2011 and the Kumamoto Earthquake in 2016. It also analyzes how each religious community functioned from the viewpoints of three kinds of social capital: “bonding,” “bridging,” and “linking” and identify challenges faced by religious communities at times of disaster.