Reconstructing social capital in a digital society rooted in local values within rural communities

Abstract

This study aims to understand the process of social capital reconstruction in a digital society rooted in local values within rural communities. This phenomenon is important to examine because the digitalization of villages not only changes access to information and services but also influences how residents build trust, social networks, mutual aid, and collective participation. This study employs a qualitative approach using an intrinsic case study design. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, participant observation, and documentation from 18–25 participants selected via purposive and snowball sampling, including villagers, community leaders, village officials, BUMDes managers, youth, local business owners, and senior citizens. Data analysis was conducted thematically through data reduction, coding, categorization, and theme extraction. The research findings indicate that rural social capital does not disappear in digital society but is reconstructed through the expansion of social networks into digital spaces, the negotiation of trust in online communication, the adaptation of digital mutual aid, the role of the younger generation as social-digital connectors, and the use of local values as a social filter in digital interactions. This study concludes that digital social capital is a process of hybridization between technology and local values. Theoretically, these findings enrich the study of social capital within the context of rural digital societies. Practically and in terms of policy, the research results underscore the importance of inclusive, participatory, and locally-value-based rural digital governance, accompanied by the strengthening of digital literacy for vulnerable groups.