Gaining Political Capital through Social Capital: Policy-Making Inclusion and Network Embeddedness of Migrants' Associations in Spain

This article analyzes the relevance of network embeddedness and social capital in allowing migrants' associations to gain political capital and access to policy making in the cities of Barcelona and Madrid. With data from a survey of migrants' associations in both locations, we examine the degree to which embeddedness in networks of links with other migrants' associations and with autochthonous Spanish civil society organizations are consequential for the inclusion of migrants' organizations in policy-making processes. The results show that migrants' organizational social capital is critical in facilitating their intermediation function vis à vis political institutions and decision makers, above and beyond their access to financial and human capital.