Page "Social capital" Paragraph 83

Social capital ( in the institutional Robert Putnam sense ) may also lead to bad outcomes if the political institution and democracy in a specific country is not strong enough and is therefore overpowered by the social capital groups.

" Civil society and the collapse of the Weimar Republic " suggests that " it was weak political institutionalization rather than a weak civil society that was Germany ’ s main problem during the Wihelmine and Weimar eras.

" Because the political institutions were so weak people looked to other outlets.

“ Germans threw themselves into their clubs, voluntary associations, and professional organizations out of frustration with the failures of the national government and political parties, thereby helping to undermine the Weimar Republic and facilitate Hitler ’ s rise to power .” In this article about the fall of the Weimar Republic, the author makes the claim that Hitler rose to power so quickly because he was able to mobilize the groups towards one common goal.

Even though German society was, at the time, a " joining " society these groups were fragmented and their members did not use the skills they learned in their club associations to better their society.

They were very introverted in the Weimar Republic.

Hitler was able to capitalize on this by uniting these highly bonded groups under the common cause of bringing Germany to the top of world politics.

The former world order had been destroyed during World War I, and Hitler believed that Germany had the right and the will to become a dominant global power.