NCJ Number
226537
Journal
Journal of Criminal Justice Volume: 37 Issue: 1 Dated: January/February 2009 Pages: 45-54
Date Published
January 2009
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This study examined whether neighborhood attachment contributed to neighborhood levels of informal social control, whether neighborhood attachment helped to explain the lower levels of informal social control typically observed in structurally disadvantaged neighborhoods, and if so, what dimensions of neighborhood attachment were most important?
Abstract
It appears that neighborhood informal social control is due to attitudinal attachment and accompanying systemic ties. Results also suggest that residents of structurally disadvantaged neighborhoods were unlikely to develop positive forms of neighborhood attachment, and as a result, were unlikely to feel invested in their neighborhood or be willing to prevent or intervene in local problems. It is recommended that future research focus on a more nuanced view of neighborhood attachment and considers work that encourages socializing in the neighborhood, promotes positive feelings about the local neighborhood, and ultimately enhances informal social control. Studies have suggested that informal social control is important to understanding neighborhood crime rates, yet, little is known about sources of informal social control in urban neighborhoods, and less is known about the role of neighborhood attachment in fostering informal social control. This article examines the role of neighborhood attachment, operationalized as a multidimensional construct comprised of systemic ties and attitudinal attachment, as a neighborhood-level source of informal social control. The purpose was to address recent criticisms of the systemic model, questioning the role of social ties as a source of informal social control in urban neighborhoods. Figure, tables, appendixes A-B, notes, and references