Assessing the Weight of Social Capital Theory in Digital Victimization Patterns Via the Oxford Internet Surveys
‘Shawn K. Smith · 2024
As information communication technologies (ICTs) increasingly broaden the expanse of digital technology in post-industrial social life, preexisting ideas about the nature and causes of harms we experience are constantly being reimagined. With specific attention to digital victimization theories, this chapter contributes to ongoing development in this area by considering an alternative theoretical framework grounded in social capital theory. Analysis of the 2013 iteration of the Oxford Internet Surveys for this purpose suggested a range of confirmations and departures from previous models of social capital and victimization. Highlighted by this work are the roles of formal and informal organizational participation, social media activity, and presence of willing guardians within one’s social collectives (both online and offline) as factors impacting the victimizations experienced in digital settings.