Can reading a book about a boy and a hen in Ghana make a difference to fifth graders in their Michigan community? Indeed, it can, and in myriad ways. At a suburban elementary school in Michigan, the authors introduced fifth graders to economic concepts in a project-based learning (PBL) unit. They began by reading aloud and discussing the picture…

This study examines coping behaviors and felt experiences of homeless adults in Michigan's Upper Peninsula. Data from in-depth interviews with 55 homeless adults reveal 5 general coping pattern groups: shelter users, campers, couch hoppers, mixed users, and circumstantial homeless. Homeless adults within each group experienced similar levels of…

This article explores the role of children in household livelihoods among the Gedeo ethnic community in Ethiopia. Three themes are discussed--reproductive activities, entrepreneurial work in marketplaces and sociospatial mobility--in the context of recent theoretical debates over children's agency and social competence. With shifts in rural…

Catastrophe theory may provide a possible model for describing and explaining the boom town phenomena at a generalized level; catastrophe models deal with phenomena in which changes in continuous independent variables lead to sudden, or abrupt, discontinuous changes in a dependent variable. Rural energy boom towns are the result of sudden, abrupt…

Identifies social policy issues for rural communities affected by major development projects. Advocates increased attention in legislation by community workers and fuller recognition of social policy as a planning and development priority. Concludes that economics is still the major concern for development projects, rather than social policy. (BR)

An outstanding problem that has haunted most development workers in Africa has been how to effectively engage rural communities who often have no access to modern technological media like newspapers, radio, television, video and film. The tendency has been for development workers to resort to top-down or blueprint development approaches that…

The Dutch countryside forms the scene for pressing problems of management and allocation of land and water. These problems underscore the need for comprehensive rural policies. For that purpose, area-based rural policy has been initiated. This new policy is part of a larger policy shift, labelled in literature as "new rural governance".…

Three small Colorado towns that faced a declining economy as the mining resource ran out used gambling-based tourism as a strategy for community development. Although economic benefits to the towns have far exceeded expectations, negative social, environmental, and political changes, such as crime alcoholism, traffic problems, and conflicts…

Communities experiencing rapid growth due to energy development have serious and predictable social and human service problems, especially concerning women, the aged, and other minorities. The Wyoming Human Services Project, a model of impact mitigation, might be emulated elsewhere to modify the effects of such growth now and in the future.…

Small western boomtowns typically respond to increased social problems by placing greater demands on existing formal service systems rather than taking advantage of the potential of utilizing informal sources of help as part of a coordinated and comprehensive approach to meeting community needs. (Author/SB)

The failure of development to improve the quality of life in most third world countries and in the less advantaged sectors of advanced capitalistic countries can be partially attributed, it is felt, to methodological errors made by those studying development. Some recent sociological approaches to the study of development are reviewed in this…

Designed to discover the influence of rapidly increasing commercial recreation on social interaction, this study dealt with the nature and changing significance of community institutions. The study was conducted from 1963 to 1965 in the emerging community of Osage Beach, Missouri, as a basis for the author's doctoral dissertation. Data for the…

Describes study of boomtown characteristics of Park City, Utah, a rural community affected by recreational development since 1970. Finds that residents experienced stresses and social problems similar to those of energy-development boomtowns, including declining quality of life, higher cost of living, and family, social and drug problems. (LFL)

Rural people in their environment have the necessary attributes to successfully endure and survive those trials that would lead to urban decline. As societal problems require increased investment in existing institutions, the growing complexity eventually yields a lower level of benefits or returns. Urban problems such as hunger, homelessness, and…