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Macro‐ and microlevel factors related to sense of community: The case of temporary neighborhoods in Israel
Author(s) -
Sagy Shifra,
Stern Eliahu,
Krakover Shaul
Publication year - 1996
Publication title -
american journal of community psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.113
H-Index - 112
eISSN - 1573-2770
pISSN - 0091-0562
DOI - 10.1007/bf02509719
Subject(s) - ethnic group , immigration , urbanity , public health , unit (ring theory) , health psychology , demography , population , sense of community , sample (material) , gerontology , macro , psychology , geography , sociology , social psychology , medicine , economics , anthropology , chemistry , mathematics education , economy , nursing , archaeology , chromatography , computer science , programming language
Abstract This study examines macro and micro factors influencing the development of sense of community (Davidson & Cotter, 1980) in two different populations (immigrants and veterans) in new temporary neighborhoods in Israel. At the macrolevel, the major factors examined were population size, population density, number of dwelling units in the site, urbanity of the area, ethnic heterogeneity, and peripheriality of the region. Three kinds of variables were examined on the microlevel: (a) personal attitudes: evaluation of the dwelling unit and satisfaction with public services; (b) social networks; and (c) sociodemographic characteristics. Data were collected from 242 immigrants from the former USSR and from 60 Israeli veterans, residing in 5 different sites. Two different patterns of predictors of sense of community emerged in the two different samples. In the veteran sample, only one macrolevel variable entered the stepwise analysis equation: the number of dwelling units in the site. In the immigrant sample, three significant microlevel factors entered the equation: evaluation of the dwelling unit, external network, and age. The data thus suggest that the major determinant factors underlying sense of community vary for different groups of people.