Theodore R. Alter

Place, Community Development, and Social Capital

Over the past decade, the concept of social capital has become an important component of many community development strategies. In this article we argue that social capital is predicated on assumptions that raise a number of questions about its usefulness in a variety of different settings. The most important features of social capital—trust and norms of reciprocity—emerge from repeated and regularized interactions that are bounded in space and time. They depend on an existing, relatively unproblematic relationship between place and social interaction. In many communities, this is not a tenable assumption. We conclude by suggesting that an interactional approach to community development can be a useful alternative.

An Interactional Approach to Place-Based Rural Development

Rural America is in the midst of the most far-reaching transformation in our history. Globalization and other forces are fundamentally altering the economic landscape and erasing many traditional sources of employment and income; in such an uncertain environment, economic development has become more important and more complicated than ever. Unfortunately, rural policies have not kept pace with the times, and there is growing recognition that what worked in the past is not effective in a global economy. In place of traditional approaches to rural development, there is an emerging consensus that we must create strategies that enhance regional/place competitiveness. In this paper, we explore this strategy, identify some of its most serious shortcomings, and propose an interactional approach that integrates economic, environmental, and social well-being.

Entrepreneurship and Community: The Next Frontier of Entrepreneurship Inquiry

In this article, the authors examine the existing literature addressing the relationship between entrepreneurship and the community and conclude that this is an important, yet relatively neglected, topic. The article begins by defining the terms “community,” “entrepreneurship,” and the nexus of the two: “community development.” It then proceeds to explore what the current literature tells us about the interaction between these elements, touching upon issues of individualism vs. community, social capital building, productive and unproductive interaction, community culture, leadership, community entrepreneurship, and family venturing, among others. The article concludes with a set of observations about the types of research needed to fill gaps in our understanding of this delicate and vital relationship.

Rural Embedded Assistants for Community Health (REACH) Network: First-Person Accounts in a Community–University Partnership

Community research and action projects undertaken by community–university partnerships can lead to contextually appropriate and sustainable community improvements in rural and urban localities. However, effective implementation is challenging and prone to failure when poorly executed. The current paper seeks to inform rural community–university partnership practice through consideration of first-person accounts from five stakeholders in the Rural Embedded Assistants for Community Health (REACH) Network. The REACH Network is a unique community–university partnership aimed at improving rural health services by identifying, implementing, and evaluating innovative health interventions delivered by local caregivers. The first-person accounts provide an insider’s perspective on the nature of collaboration. The unique perspectives identify three critical challenges facing the REACH Network: trust, coordination, and sustainability. Through consideration of the challenges, we identified several strategies for success. We hope readers can learn their own lessons when considering the details of our partnership’s efforts to improve the delivery infrastructure for rural healthcare.

Community entrepreneurship development: an introduction

An emerging area of scholarship can be found at the nexus between entrepreneurship and community development. Beyond a mere focus on firms and their contributions, this growing nexus in the literature seeks to understand the complex ways that entrepreneurs benefit their communities, and that communities enhance or inhibit entrepreneurship. This exploration is fundamentally economic, sociological, psychological, strategic, behavioral, and cultural; it should incorporate many contributions of scholars across a wide range of disciplines. This introductory article examines the current state of research at the nexus of community and entrepreneurship, and conceptually positions entrepreneurship as deeply embedded in – and inseparable from – community, social, and economic structures. The article presents community entrepreneurship development as a multidimensional and challenging strategy economically speaking, but one that produces many benefits beyond economic growth. The article discusses both the challenges and benefits of promoting entrepreneurship in the community, presents the articles comprising the special issue, and ends with a call to action and scholarship in this exciting conceptual space.

Promoting Fair Local Organizing for Broadband Delivery: Suggestions for Community-Level Action in Persistently Underserved Communities

Despite a wealth of research on broadband proliferation across rural and urban areas, the well-researched digital divide still persists in many rural communities, hindering social, community, and economic development. Policy remedies like the 2009 Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP) have improved broadband development in some areas, while other areas continue to be underserved, or served only by expensive and insufficient broadband options. The continued persistence of the divide challenges policy assumptions about the universality of coverage through federal and state-level initiatives, and brings the focus of successful broadband development to the community level.This paper presents the results of a USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)-funded research project conducted in Maine, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, intended to uncover community-level factors that have either encouraged or inhibited independent, local broadband network development in persistently underserved communities. Evidence is presented from six study sites across the three states illustrating a variety of delivery strategies, and underscoring the role of communities, culture, and local institutions in the network development process. The paper develops a series of alternative policy ideas and suggestions for supporting and promoting successful local initiatives, designed specifically to enhance citizen-driven efforts in persistently underserved areas.

Public sociology, public scholarship, and community development

In his 2004 presidential address to the American Sociological Association, Michael Burawoy called for the creation of a public sociology that would be more relevant and useful to the people whom we study and with whom we work. This vision represents one of many responses to the growing chorus of critics who claim that higher education and the various disciplines that comprise it are out of date, out of touch, and are failing to address pressing societal issues. Seen in this light, public sociology is a laudable attempt to reinvigorate the discipline. But there are problems with Burawoys formulation that prevent it from fulfilling this promise. In this article, we critically examine public sociology, and argue that a broader, alternative model of public scholarship—one that combines academic and civic benefits—will enable sociologists and other scholars to collaborate with the public in ways that more effectively address the intractable problems facing citizens and communities. This model has particular relevance to the theory and practice of community development.

Mapping community innovation: Using social network analysis to map the interactional field, identify facilitators, and foster community development

Abstract Can community networks be mapped to facilitate innovation? This study focuses on social structure and network interactions that can be used to identify key individuals and relationships with the potential to facilitate community innovation and development. Viewed through the lenses of social network analysis (SNA), interactional community theory, and social capital (trust), this study examines the dynamics of network interactions and the community field in a developing research park. Operated by two US Department of Energy national laboratories in California, the interactional environment of this research park is similar to the social structures and processes of small, place-based communities. SNA is used to identify critical community actors and map the core of a community field shared by two national laboratories. Findings suggest that SNA can be productively applied to community field mapping with the potential to strengthen collaboration, overcome innovation barriers, and identify facilitating actors who can foster community development.

Weighing the universal service obligation: introducing rural well-being as a consideration in the viability of the United States Postal Service

Due to the rise in web-based communication, such as e-mail and declining surface mail volume over the past decade, the United States Postal Service (USPS) has been forced to reconsider its universal service obligation (USO). The USO ensures that all American citizens, regardless of geographic location, receive postal service six days a week. Considerations of postal service reductions have largely been couched in analyses that examine the financial efficiency from a public service provision perspective, like maximizing postal delivery while reducing cost. However, little consideration has been given to the impact of postal service cutbacks, reductions in delivery dates, limitations on routes, and post office closures, on the well-being of rural citizens. Since most postal service reductions are occurring, or will occur, in rural areas, rural citizens are likely to be most profoundly affected by the diminution of the USPS. The USPS is an iconic institution with historical and social importance in many rural communities, and may have disproportional importance in places with few other communications and shipping alternatives. This article examines the history of the USO, and discusses some of the likely impacts of postal service cutbacks on rural areas, and how this may affect the well-being of rural citizens, businesses, and communities.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS OF CHANGING SCHOOL ENROLLMENTS

Two topics dominate discussions of public elementary and secondary education. The first is declining enrollments and the second is fiscal problems, especially those problems associated with such catch words as equity, taxpayer revolt, and tax reform. In this paper, we analyze the relationship between these two topics by examining enrollment change and fiscal characteristics in 504 Pennsylvania school districts. Our purpose is to provide a descriptive base for further research on the fiscal problems raised by changing school enrollments.