Status attainment in The Netherlands during the period 1851-1890: The influence of social capital on status attainment in the context of modernization

The present study examines the relationship between social capital and status attainment in The Netherlands during the period 1851-1890. Number of siblings is expected to have a negative effect on the occupational status of the husband as predicted by resource dilution theory. The occupational status of the siblings and brothers-in-law can be seen as resources and thus represent the social capital perspective. Modernization processes are expected to lower the effect of social capital on the occupational status of a married man. A large database of marriage certificates in five Dutch provinces was used to obtain data, which was then analyzed with multiple linear regression with interaction terms. The findings support resource dilution theory, especially for brothers. Thus, when a man had more brothers, his occupational status was lower. Social capital perspective is supported by the fact that occupational status of brothers and brothers-in-law was positively correlated with the occupational status of a married man. The processes of modernization seem to have a negative effect on the relationship between social capital and the occupational status of a married man.