Communities continue to establish, promote, and monitor the educational outcomes of their citizenry through both explicit and implied norms. Community attributes influence the pursuit of education and level of education completed by individual citizens. The influencers within communities can be attributed to common constructs of communities…

Analysis of aggregate- and individual-level data for a national sample of white women suggest that adolescent nonmarital sexual activity and contraceptive use are shaped by the local opportunity structure and normative environment. Social disintegration, socioeconomic status, and availability of employment opportunities for women emerged as…

It is argued in this paper that the structure of the political community may be at least as important as the structure of the school environment in shaping the educational aspirations of minority children. (Author/AM)

Low-income neighborhoods with high African American concentrations increased mortality for all residents, but particularly young and middle-aged men; Mexican American neighborhoods conferred a mortality advantage on male residents; women received a mortality advantage in neighborhoods with higher average educational attainment; and individual…

To examine how neighborhood characteristics influence academic achievement, data were drawn from a community survey of low-income neighborhoods and linked with data on performance on standardized testing for third-grade students attending elementary schools in those communities. Results of multilevel logistic regressions indicated that probability…

Iowa study of 207 nonmetropolitan White female-headed families (each a divorced mother, an adolescent in grade 8-9, and a sibling) found that mothers' ineffective parenting styles were related to community disorganization, both directly and indirectly via negative events, lack of social support, and depression. Community disorganization was highly…

Analysis of High School and Beyond data reveals that suburban students were most likely and rural students were least likely to attend college. Parental expectation of college attendance was the most powerful predictor of subsequent college attendance across residence categories. College attendance of rural students was also predicted by community…