Chicago’s “Disappearing Middle Class” Can Be Found in Its Proliferating Upper Middle-Class Neighborhoods
April 30, 2026 | Scott Winship
In a recent report with Stephen Rose, I argued that the narrative of a “shrinking middle…
Social Capital
Family, community, civic society, institutions
Social well-being is on the decline. Families have become less stable, participation in religious and civic life has fallen, and communities have grown more fragmented and polarized. COSM is dedicated to understanding the breakdown of social capital and identifying solutions to renew America’s associational life.
There Are Many Reasons to Cheer Up About the State of the Middle Class
April 11, 2026 | Scott Winship
This piece originally appeared at National Review Online and is reprinted here with permission. Statistics show that…
Young Men Aren’t Checked Out. We’ve Closed the Paths That Once Guided Them
March 24, 2026 | Samuel J. Abrams
For the better part of a decade, a familiar narrative has taken hold: Young men…
The New Era for Nonprofits: America’s Old System of Federally Funded Nonprofits is Gone. What Comes Next?
August 28, 2025 | Daniel Stid
For six decades, the federal government has both funded and relied on nonprofit service providers…
Are conservative women embracing the ‘Supermom’ ideal?
August 22, 2025 | Brad Wilcox, Autumn Zeoli, and Ken Burchfiel
It’s not liberal but conservative women who are embracing the “Supermom” ideal made popular by second-wave feminism…
Libraries Are Doing the Work—Let’s Fund Them Accordingly
May 14, 2025 | Shamichael Hallman
Over the past few years, I’ve had the privilege of visiting libraries of all sizes—from…
Workplace Segregation between College and Non-College Workers
April 19, 2025 | Edward L. Glaeser, Francis M. Dillon, and William R. Kerr
Abstract We measure the level and growth of education segregation in American workplaces from 2000…
Alexis de Tocqueville and the Art of Association
March 4, 2025 | Daniel Stid
Alexis de Tocqueville, the French aristocrat, wrote as a friend of democracy in America, albeit…
Shifting Patterns of Social Interaction: Exploring the Social Life of Urban Spaces Through A.I.
December 4, 2024 | Edward L. Glaeser et al.
Abstract We analyze changes in pedestrian behavior over a 30-year period in four urban public…
Kevin Corinth: Addressing Social Capital Poverty in America
October 16, 2024 | Kevin Corinth
Despite improvements in material living standards, the erosion of social connections, civic engagement, and community…
It’s time to face up to our social poverty problem
October 11, 2024 | Scott Winship, Kevin Corinth, and Thomas O'Rourke
Over the past half-century, virtually all aspects of social life have deteriorated in America. We…
The New “Old Girls Network” in the American Workplace
October 3, 2024 | Brent Orrell
One of America’s great success stories has been the gradual opening of opportunities for women…
Disconnected: The Growing Class Divide in American Civic Life
September 25, 2024 | Daniel A. Cox and Sam Pressler
Doing Right by Kids: Leveraging Social Capital and Innovation to Increase Opportunity
September 17, 2024 | Scott Winship, Yuval Levin, and Ryan Streeter
Material hardship among American children has never been lower. This seeming victory in the War…
The Distribution of Social Capital across Individuals and its Relationship to Income
August 29, 2024 | Kevin Corinth, Scott Winship, and Thomas O'Rourke
Abstract There have been several attempts to measure social capital—the value inhering in relationships—at an…
Latest Updates
Protected: How Fixing SNAP’s Payment Error Rate Formula Would Change State Cost Shares
August 17, 2026 | Kevin Corinth
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.
The Ongoing Battle to Defend Welfare Reform
August 15, 2026 | Scott Winship and Kevin Corinth
Welfare reform replaced Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) with Temporary Assistance for Needy Families...
The Misleading Narrative About the ‘Hollowing Out’ of the Middle Class
August 12, 2026 | Scott Winship
The prevailing media narrative after years of mounting economic inequality is that the middle class...
The Cautionary Tale of Mark Zuckerberg and Priscilla Chan
August 9, 2026 | Naomi Schaefer Riley
“If they knew they were going to stop investing in our community,” Angelica Cardenas told The Wall...