The Role of "Intangible Factors" for Local Development: Policy Implications and Preliminary Indicators for Evaluation

The reinterpretation of the informal processes underlying local development implies rethinking the notion of the economic enhancement of the so-called “intangible factors” (i.e., unmeasurable ones). This topic has recently gained increasing prominence in local development studies, with particular reference to “relational goods” (i.e., pertinent to the social area). These studies claim that an environment of interpersonal trust, high participation in associative networks, and widespread civic culture can increase social cohesion, the efficiency of public policies, and individual well-being (ISTAT, 2017). The objective of this work is twofold: (i) on the one hand, to identify the interpretative keys of the “economic enhancement” of the above “intangible factors” (i.e., the reconstruction of the process of creation of well-being and economic value); (ii) on the other hand, to propose useful indicators to enhance the evaluation practices of programs and projects for local development. This work aims not exclusively to include social issues into the economic theory3 but rather to undertake the more complex effort of assessing the economic value of the social elements within the dynamics of local development.