Chinese Journal of Sociology ›› 2015, Vol. 35 ›› Issue (4): 177-.

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Keep Good Men Company: A Study on Transnational Social Capital Transfer of Expatriates Based on Social Network Analysis Model#br#

YANG Zhangbo, GAO Shanxing, LIU Xiaohua   

  • Online:2015-07-20 Published:2015-07-20
  • Contact: YANG Zhangbo，School of Management，Xi’an Jiaotong University.E-mail：axins@stu.xjtu.edu.cn E-mail:axins@stu.xjtu.edu.cn
  • About author:Author 1：YANG Zhangbo，School of Management，Xi’an Jiaotong University；Author 2：GAO Shanxing，School of Management，Xi’an Jiaotong University；Author 3：LIU Xiaohua，School of Management，Xi’an Jiaotong University
  • Supported by:
    The article was supported by the Major Program of National Social Science Foundation of China（11&ZD170）.

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Abstract:

Returning expatriates not only brought back to their native countries intellectual capital but also social capital. The transfer of academic social capital by expatriates give domestic scholars better access to foreign information, foster participation in the global academic community, and build confidence and academic reputation. But current research concerning the phenomenon of social capital transfer of expatriates is very limited.
This study proposes a crossborder social capital transfer model of expatraites by applying the theory of homophily, peer effects and group homogenization. An analysis of the data on transnational academic capital transfers, collected from the Network of Thousands of Academic Collaborators, a recruitment network of returning expatraites, shows that returnees are able to accumulate significantly more academic social capital in their postreturn career. Foreign academic social capital is transferred to the domestic academic community through a threeway triadic closure mechanism. The postreturn accumulated capital appears to be transferred with higher efficiency. With such capital transfers, returnees help break stagnation and trigger a cascade of innovation.
We propose a model as well as an analytic formula of transnational social capital transfer. We find that social capital transfer is a process, by which weak relations become strong and indirect contacts becomes direct contacts. Our research implies that crossborder social capital transfer happens when a scholar who possesses the homogenizing characters mediates between two heterogeneous groups and is able to bridge the differences. However once the transfer is completed, the mediator will lose his/her role, which leads to a decrease of clusters and an increase of cluster coefficient. Our study also examines the social impact of returning expatraites by means of quantitative methods. The paper recommends that in planning and modifying Chinese talent recruitment programs, the government should take into consideration the efficiency of social capital transfer.

Key words: social capital, transfer of social capital
, collaborators networks, recruitment program