Aspects of social vulnerability and social inclusion in Greece during the period of prolonged multidimensional crisis: The role of social capital and community power

Undoubtedly, the economic challenges throughout the economic crisis in Greece have been constantly in the forefront from 2008 until today. However, one area that deserves more attention and analysis is social vulnerability and the role of social capital structures. The implementation of austerity measures during the economic crisis led to significant declines in the field of social policy in Greece, resulting in the weakening of economic capacity and the deterioration of living conditions for a significant part of the population. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to focus on aspects of the impact of the economic crisis on social vulnerability and social capital in Greece from 2008 to 2020. Some may consider that the economic crisis in Greece ended in 2018 with the formal exit from the memoranda, but the maintenance of specific commitments in the post-memorandum era, combined with the crisis of the new coronavirus that followed, intensify the pressure on vulnerable social groups and create several implications in terms of social capital and social inclusion. The methodology of this study is initially based on the analysis of the concepts of social vulnerability, social capital and social inclusion and is based on the analysis of secondary data in areas such as income inequality, access to education and employment, which, to a large extent, determine the level of social vulnerability and the consequent social and economic implications. The findings show that the risk of social exclusion, inequality and poverty rates has increased, especially for young people, which increases social vulnerability and intensifies the need for intervention by the welfare state not only for the implementation of a top-down social inclusion strategy but also to create the circumstances for a bottom-up social inclusion.