Designing a Measurement Model and Continuous Improvement of Social Capital Based on the Compound Eye Metaphor in “Water and Sewage of Tehran Province”
Keywords:
Compound eye, metaphor, measurement, social capital, improvementAbstract
Most previous research on social capital has used cross-sectional surveys, and no model or framework has been proposed for continuous measurement and improvement over time. The purpose of this research is to introduce and implement the “compound eye metaphor” using various information systems or platforms that can continuously measure and improve social capital. The five-stage model of “Lynham's theory building” was used to conduct the research, and the “Krishna and Shrader” model was used for measurement. This research is developmental-applied in purpose and was conducted using allegorical logic (questioning and analogy) through the metaphor of the compound eye. To collect quantitative and qualitative data, this research adopted a simultaneous mixed-methods approach, drawing on three sources (interviews, questionnaires, and compound eye platforms) and analyzing and modeling the data. The findings of the research show the status of social capital on platforms (2.50) and in the questionnaire (3.15). Also, in terms of time, social capital is weekly on the platform, with an average of 2.24 in the first week and 2.90 in the last week, and in the questionnaire, with 2.37 and 3.62, which show an increasing trend. In the end, through the analysis of the similarities and differences of the compound eye, a model for measuring and continuously improving social capital was presented. Therefore, the metaphor of the compound eye has succeeded in continuously and daily measuring and improving social capital.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Alireza Hosseinabadi (Author); Hossein Khnifar; Hamidreza Yazdani (Author)
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