Most ways of measuring social capital have to do with trust - people who trust that favours and help will be available when they need it will favour and help others more. Those who are seen as trying to get a free ride will get much less help. A social climber tries to earn social capital by making friends with those who have it but without actually helping. Some call this kind of person a social parasite. They are very hard to detect, unlike people who cheat or commit fraud. When there are too many of these kinds of people, especially when they are politicians, people begin to mistrust their government. Rather than work with a political party to change law, they may start to look for direct revenge for things. 