The program "Thinking Allowed" on Radio 4 last night was a veritable treasure trove of Human Science-like ideas. Firstly there was a disucssion (details below) with Harvard Sociologist Robert Samson on whether or not the ideas behind the famous "Broken Windows" anti-crime strategy actually stacks up. The original article by Kelling and Wilson in 1982 proved political dynamite for Rudy Guilliani when he was mayor of New York.
Next up were Dr Leigh Shaw-Taylor and Professor Allan Kellehear who discussed the general trends of demography in the UK in a pertinent and accessible way. Did people in the countrtyside live longer than those in the cities until the mid 20C? When did medicine actually become effective?
Listen to the whole show here
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BJS 2008 Annual Public Lecture
Disparity and Diversity in the Contemporary City: Social Order Revisited
Robert Sampson, Henry Ford II Professor of the Social Sciences and Chair of Sociology, Harvard University
This lecture looks at classic urban themes as they are manifested in the contemporary city, focusing on social reproduction of inequality, the meanings of disorder, and the link between the two. Points to be raised by the speaker will include:
-stigmatizing an area as crime-ridden or disorderly sets in motion a 'self-fulfilling prophecy'
-this social process predicts the future poverty status of a community even accounting for its present economic condition.
-as a result poverty and disorder are highly stable-in some cases across many decades, leading to durable inequality
-both residents and outsiders are more likely to perceived (or "see") see an area as disorderly if the population has a concentration of blacks, minorities, or immigrant groups
even accounting for actual or observed levels of disorder
-ironically, however, and despite widespread views to the contrary, immigrant concentration appears to be related to lower levelsof violence and in U.S. cities at least, increasing revitalization of inner city areas
-the future of cities is bright, in part because of increasing diversity/immigration that is attracting the 'creative class'
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