The wp_capabilities saves the value as serilized array, you can try it in your php or for this example here: http://blog.tanist.co.uk/files/unserialize/.
The Code:
a:1:{s:13:"administrator";b:1;}
Is:
Array
(
[administrator] => 1
)
Meaning the user is an administrator.
You can add new roles to the database by running the function add_role, and only run it once!