Collective Efficacy and Informal Social Control

Sampson, Raudenbush, and Earls study

-Longitudinal study 1995-2002 -Surveyed white, black, and hispanic residents aged 8-25 -Linked with social, economic, organizational, political, and cultural data from census bureau and Chicago police department -Also conducted systematic social observation

what are the primary questions and hypotheses for sampson, raudenbush, and earls (1997)?

1. How do neighborhood characteristics influence collective efficacy? hypothesis: concentrated disadvantage decreases collective efficacy: residential stability increases it. 2. Does collective efficacy explain the relationship between neighborhood characteristics and crime? hypothesis: after accounting for collective efficacy, disadvantage and residential instability will have a smaller impact on crime.

What is a mechanism?

A process by which something takes place or is brought about -An explanation

How is social capital expected to relate to communities and crime?

Communities with greater social capital are more able to prevent and solve crime

What characterizes strong social ties?

Emotional investment and frequent interaction

What is the difference between formal and informal social control?

Formal: regulation or force conformity, usually by police and courts Informal: social regulation by other members in the community

What role did collective efficacy play in the relationship between community characteristics and crime?

It is an important mechanism -Disadvantage, residential instability, and immigrant concentration help shape collective efficacy -In turn, collective efficacy helps explain the relationship between these neighborhood characteristics and crime

What characterizes weak social ties?

Less familiarity and less interaction

Does research support social ties as a mechanism?

Mixed: some ties are pro-criminal; the strength of weak ties

What are examples of informal and formal control?

Monitoring play groups, intervening to reduce truancy and loitering, confronting people who break the social norms

Does research support social capital as a mechanism?

Mostly supportive; places with more civic engagement generally have lower rates of crime

What is collective efficacy and how does it relate to Social Disorganization Theory?

Mutual trust and the willingness to intervene on behalf of the common good -Neighborhoods vary in their ability to achieve goals

How are social ties expected to relate to communities and crime?

Places with fewer and weaker ties are less able to effectively respond to crime

What's the name of the dataset sampson, raudenbush, and earls use?

Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods.

Overview of Sampson, Raudenbush, and Earls (1997)

Starting point: Prior research shows that crime is concentrated in neighborhoods with low SES and high residential instability

What is social control?

The capacity of a group to regulate its members according to desired principles-to realize collective, as opposed to forced, goals.

What is social capital?

The investment in social relations with expected returns. examples: -# of civic and social organizations in the neighborhood -Extent of residents participation in these organizations -Level of trust among residents.

What do we mean by social ties?

The quantity and content of ties connecting neighborhood residents