Course Description
Urban crime and spatial variation in crime rates. The impact of crime on the structure of communities and its role in neighborhood decline.
Athena Title
COMMUNITIES & CRIME
Semester Course Offered
Not offered on a regular basis.
Grading System
A - F (Traditional)
Course Objectives
The objective of this course is for students to learn how this area has evolved through the ongoing interplay between empirical research and theoretical elaboration and integration. The course uses readings from historical and contemporary sources, both theoretical and empirical. Students are expected to demonstrate knowledge of the theoretical and assumptive foundations of the perspective, and how these foundations have been modified to accommodate contemporary trends and patterns with respect to life in urban communities. Contrasts to other theoretical perspectives are also examined, and students will be expected to distinguish the assumptions upon which different perspectives are based.
Topical Outline
Theoretical Foundations: The Chicago School and Human Ecology Elaborations and Explications: Beyond The Chicago School Contemporary Urban Dynamics and the Social Ecology of Crime The Political Economy of Place Urban Poverty and the Underclass Routine Activities Structuralist Approaches Subcultural Approaches Reciprocal Effects of Crime & Neighborhood Processes Public Policy Issues