This project will examine interpersonal networks among urban neighbors. The study is motivated by the relevance of networks to the controversy about the "decline of community" as well as by the importance of networks as sources of social support and influence. A survey of the residents of 45 blocks in Nashville, Tennessee will be conducted. The blocks will be selected to vary on contextual characteristics such as racial composition and the distribution of single versus multi-unit dwellings. Within the blocks, an attempt will be made to interview all residents 13 and older. Analysis of the resulting data will yield descriptions of the content and structure of ties between neighbors. The first part of the analysis will assess the ability of individual, household, and neighborhood variables to predict network traits. In the second part of the analysis, three kinds of network consequences -- neighborhood attachment, individual well-being, and local instrumental outcomes such as responses to crime and organized political activity -- will be examined.
