1. Neighborhoods & Communities
Introduction to Psychology
Virginia Union University

2. Neighborhoods & Communities
What kind of neighborhood have you lived in?
Urban, suburban or rural?
Racially mixed or racially segregated?
Available resources (i.e. parks, stores, positive social outlets for kids, clean streets, etc.) or non?

3. Neighborhoods & Communities
Definitions vary
Can be defined politically, socially or physically
African Americans more likely to define neighborhood based on social relationships rather than location
Community
The local context in which people live
Defined by networks of associations that bind individuals, families, institutions and organizations

4. Where African Americans Live
According to the 2000 U.S. Census
African Americans comprised 12.9% of the total U.S. population
86.5% lived in metropolitan communities
Approximately 53% lived in central cities and an increasing number living in suburbs
Although racial residential segregation declined for African Americans between 1980 and 2000, African Americans remain the most segregated ethnic group in the United States
Concentration of poverty in many urban predominantly African American communities is declining

5. Importance of Neighborhoods & Communities
Impact of neighborhood & community factors on the well-being of African Americans
Neighborhood racial composition predicts health outcomes/mortality rates

6. Theoretical Perspectives on Communities
Social Disorganization Theory
Criminality linked to limitations in community’s social resources and capacity to meet the needs of its residents
Factors such as limited community-level economic resources, ethnic heterogeneity, and high rates of residential mobility reflect community disorganization
Relationship between community violence & resident’s sense of collective efficacy
Resident’s belief that they can have an impact on behavior within their communities

7. Theoretical Perspectives on Communities
Broken Windows Theory
Crime is more likely to occur in areas where the physical environment is disorganized and unkempt
Disorganization of the physical space in the neighborhood sends a message to potential criminals that residents do not care about their neighborhood
Neighborhood crime more influenced by resident collective efficacy than upkeep of the physical environment

8. Crips & Bloods: Made in America
Identify neighborhood & community variables that contributed to the development and sustained activity of the Crips and Bloods