Suchergebnisse

__Abstract__ Social scientists have recently paid a great deal of attention to clubs, associations and societies. This is due to the growing interest in civil society and social capital. Both scientists and politicians believe that a vivid civil society, characterized by a large number of voluntary associations active in many aspects of social life, has several positive effects. According to this view, civil society promotes shared civic values and stimulates social cohesion. In other words: club life pulls down social boundaries. As a consequence, modern policy makers involve all kinds of voluntary associations in local, regional, national and international government, because they consider these associations as ideal intermediaries between citizens and government.

Civil society is widely considered as a crucial element in contemporary society. Academics and policy makers have traditionally associated it with voluntary associations and organizations, assuming that associational life is an ideal intermediary between citizens and government. While members of associations form large social networks, which they can mobilize at critical moments, the conviviality of group sociability fosters the development of a set of common values, such as a democratic political culture and other civic virtues. Its origins are generally situated in the eighteenth century, and are mostly attributed to secularization, Enlightenment thinking, the birth of the "public sphere," and growing emancipation from oppressive structures such as the church and the state.