The findings offer a fresh perspective for educators and policymakers. While social capital—defined as trust, networks, and shared norms has long been regarded as an important resource for school improvement, the study demonstrates that simply possessing these relational assets does not guarantee innovation or organizational success. Instead, leadership determines whether social capital remains dormant or becomes a driver of learning, adaptation, and institutional growth.
Why This Research Matters
Schools worldwide are operating in an increasingly complex environment shaped by rapid technological change, rising expectations for educational quality, and greater accountability to governments, parents, and communities. These pressures require schools to rely on more than financial resources and physical infrastructure.
According to the researchers, many educational organizations already possess rich interpersonal relationships among teachers, administrators, students, and parents. However, numerous schools continue to struggle with innovation despite these strengths. This contradiction motivated the researchers to examine not whether schools have social capital, but how that capital is transformed into organizational capability.
Rather than viewing social capital as a static organizational asset, the study introduces the concept of social capital activation a leadership process that converts trust and relationships into collective organizational action.
A Qualitative Study of Two Indonesian Madrasahs
The research employed a qualitative multiple-case study involving two state Islamic senior secondary schools in Lamongan Regency, East Java. One school represented an urban environment with a more administrative culture, while the other reflected a suburban setting characterized by stronger communal relationships.
Throughout 2026, the researchers collected data through:
- In-depth interviews with principals, vice principals, teachers, administrative staff, students, and parents.
- Direct observations of school activities and everyday interactions.
- Analysis of school documents, meeting records, and communication practices.
The data were analyzed thematically to identify recurring organizational patterns and leadership practices that influenced the use of social capital.
Four Key Findings
The study identifies four major themes explaining how schools transform relationships into organizational capacity.
1. Social Capital Often Exists but Remains Dormant
Both schools possessed strong interpersonal relationships characterized by trust, collegiality, informal discussion groups, and positive parent-school relationships. However, much of this relational wealth was not actively used to improve teaching, learning, or innovation.
The researchers argue that social capital represents potential energy, not organizational performance by itself.
2. Leadership Activates Hidden Relational Resources
Effective principals did not create social capital from scratch. Instead, they identified existing networks, understood informal influence, strengthened trust, and aligned individual interests with institutional goals.
The researchers describe leadership activation as progressing through four interconnected mechanisms:
- Recognition
- Alignment
- Mobilization
- Institutionalization
These mechanisms transform existing relationships into coordinated organizational action.
3. Informal Relationships Become Organizational Capability
When social capital was successfully activated, schools experienced measurable organizational improvements, including:
- Stronger teacher learning communities.
- Peer mentoring among students.
- Greater parental trust and involvement.
- More innovative educational programs.
- Improved capacity to adapt to educational policy changes.
The researchers observed that collaboration gradually evolved into institutional routines rather than isolated activities.
4. Excessive Bonding Can Reduce Innovation
The research also highlights an important caution.
Schools with extremely strong internal loyalty may unintentionally discourage criticism, limit information sharing, and reinforce seniority-based decision making. In these environments, teachers and staff may hesitate to express different opinions because disagreement can be interpreted as disloyalty.
The authors emphasize that healthy organizations require bridging social capital—connections across different groups that encourage openness, fresh ideas, and constructive debate.
Leadership Matters More Than Relationship Quantity
One of the study's most significant theoretical contributions is the proposal that school improvement follows a longer pathway than previously assumed.
Rather than moving directly from social capital to better organizational performance, the evidence supports the sequence:
Social Capital → Leadership Activation → Organizational Capacity → School Improvement
This framework explains why schools with similarly strong relationships may achieve very different outcomes depending on how their leaders mobilize existing networks.
Implications for Education Policy and School Management
The findings suggest that investments in educational improvement should extend beyond infrastructure, teacher qualifications, and financial resources.
For school leaders, the research recommends:
- Building trust before implementing major reforms.
- Encouraging collaboration across departments and stakeholder groups.
- Creating opportunities for open discussion rather than enforcing conformity.
- Embedding successful collaborative practices into formal organizational systems so they continue beyond individual leadership terms.
These recommendations may help schools strengthen innovation, organizational resilience, and long-term institutional development.
Academic Insight
According to Alif Firdaus Zamzam, Yatim Riyanto, and Muhamad Sholeh from Universitas Negeri Surabaya and Universitas Islam Darul Ulum Lamongan, schools should no longer measure success by the amount of social capital they possess alone. Their findings indicate that relationships become organizational power only when leaders intentionally recognize, align, mobilize, and institutionalize those relationships into collective action.
Author Profiles
Alif Firdaus Zamzam is a researcher affiliated with Universitas Negeri Surabaya (UNESA) and Universitas Islam Darul Ulum Lamongan, specializing in educational leadership, social capital, organizational capacity, and school improvement.
Yatim Riyanto is a senior academic at Universitas Negeri Surabaya (UNESA) whose expertise focuses on education, educational leadership, and organizational development.
Muhamad Sholeh is a researcher at Universitas Negeri Surabaya (UNESA) with research interests in educational management, organizational innovation, and school quality improvement. The article identifies the three scholars as the authors of the study and their respective university affiliations.
Source
Article Title: From Social Capital to Organizational Capacity: Activating Relational Resources for School Innovation
Journal: Formosa Journal of Science and Technology (FJST)
Publication: Volume 5, Number 7, 2026
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