| Abstract [eng] |
The master graduation paper analyses social capital elements and their expression within Lithuanian credit unions. Networks, trust and norms as well as participation are ultimate parts of everyday Lithuanian credit unions' corporate life however it has never been analysed in terms of social capital and its impact to activities of credit unions. Credit unions in Lithuanian started their operations in 1994-1995, however the share in Lithuania banking sector is very low 0,97% of the banking industry assets market. However in terms of network outlets credit unions are the second largest financial network in Lithuania having 67 credit unions, 104 branches and nearly 95000 members. Therefore it is vital to analyse the benefits of social capital it may provide to credit unions and their members and to further increase the network usage and membership. The purpose of the graduation paper is to find out what are key elements of social capital in Lithuania credit unions and how social capital may influence sustainable development of credit unions in Lithuania and to compare its current expression with the developed credit unions' movements in Ireland, Poland and Italy. The hypothesis of the research: the social capital expression in Lithuanian credit unions is weaker than in European credit unions networks. In order to approve or reject the hypothesis, empirical research was carried out from March, 2009 till May 2009 with the management of Lithuanian credit unions that are members of Lithuanian Central Credit Union (LCCU) The key findings of the empirical research is that due to weakening links with the communities and lack of supportive enterprises (leasing, insurance, etc) the expression of social capital is partially weaker than in European developed credit unions networks. However the high level of trust among membership and very low member participation in credit union's activities and management are of the same level as in Irish and Polish credit unions. The main sources used in the master graduation paper were scientific literature, working papers on social capital, Lithuanian legal acts, information from Lithuanian Central Credit Union and internet resources from foreign credit unions. The paper contains 74 pages, 23 tables and 32 pictures. |
