Development practitioners worldwide increasingly recognize the importance of informal institutions – such as norms of cooperation, non-discrimination, or the role of community oversight in the management of investment activities – in affecting well-being, poverty, and even economic growth. While there have been many country- or region-specific studies that explore relationships between such social development indicators and other development outcomes, there has been less empirical analysis that tests these relationships at the international level. This is largely due to data limitations: few reliable, globally-representative data sources exist that can provide a basis for cross-country comparison of social norms and practice, social trust and community engagement.