Media release

Rural families rely on family, friends and neighbours

13 May 2008

The people living in the small Westland communities of Hari Hari and Whataroa rely heavily on their ties with family, friends and neighbours to get them through the hard times.

A study funded by the Commission shows that the trust people had in one another, linked with a strong sense of reciprocity helped them to cope with changes such as the loss of forestry and the growth in dairying and tourism. Their shared feelings of trust and a desire to pay back help and support that they received were also shown to be important to building a strong sense of community.

Strengthening rural families: an exploration of industry transformation, community and social capital by University of Canterbury researchers Colin G Goodrich and Kaylene A Sampson was funded by the Commission’s Blue Skies Fund.

Researchers spoke to many families to create 12 'stories' that were typical of different types of families living in the two towns eg newcomers, older established farming couple, middle aged urban couple and so on.

The study built up a picture of how these families developed their social connections within the community and drew on them to help themselves and others.

"For this 'social capital' to work well it has to come from the bottom up," said Kaylene.

"Our interviews, and research done by others, show that the wellbeing of communities and families depends on the amount of social capital there is."

The researchers said their findings show how important it is for policy makers to help local people draw on local resources as part of their provision of financial, technical or advisory support to families in the community.