MEASURES FOR COMMUNITY AND NEIGHBORHOOD RESEARCH

Measures for Community and Neighborhood Research is the first book of its kind to compile measures focused on communities and neighborhoods in one accessible resource. Organized into two main sections, the first provides the rationale, structure and purpose, and analysis of methodological issues, along with a conceptual and theoretical framework; the second section contains 10 chapters that synthesize, analyze, and describe measures for community and neighborhood research, with tables that summarize highlighted measures. The book will get readers thinking about which aspects of the neighborhood may be most important to measure in different research designs and also help researchers, practitioners, funders, and others more closely examine the impact of their work in communities and neighborhoods.

List of Measures and Table Numbers	p. xi
Preface	p. xvii
Acknowledgments	p. xix
About the Authors	p. xxi
Introductory Chapters
Chapter 1 Introduction and Purpose	p. 1
Defining Communities and Neighborhoods	p. 1
Overview of Measurement Methods and Inclusion Criteria for Measures in This Book	p. 2
Measurement Reliability	p. 4
Measurement Validity	p. 5
Purpose and Structure	p. 6
Description of Book Chapters	p. 6
Conclusion	p. 8
Chapter 2 Framework for Community and Neighborhood Measurement	p. 11
Conceptual Framework	p. 12
Conceptual Domains	p. 16
Examples of Community Measures in Research and Practice	p. 16
Example Application 1 Improving Access to Healthy Food	p. 19
Example Application 2 Promotion of Community Health	p. 19
Example Application 3 Promoting Community Safety and Preventing Violence	p. 20
Example Application 4 Prevention of Substance Use Disorders	p. 20
Conclusion	p. 21
Chapter 3 Methodological Considerations for Community and Neighborhood Measurement	p. 24
Methodological Issues When Using Community or Neighborhood-Level Measures	p. 24
Special Problems With Ecological and Geographic Units	p. 24
Ecological Fallacy	p. 24
The Modifiable Areal Unit Problem (MAUP)	p. 25
Uncertain Geographic Context Problem (UGCoP)	p. 25
Violation of the Independence Assumption	p. 26
Sampling Considerations When Community Is the Unit of Analysis	p. 26
Addressing Sparseness Within Neighborhood Samples	p. 26
Sampling Neighborhoods or Place-Based Communities	p. 27
Sample Power in Multilevel Studies	p. 28
Assessing the Reliability of Neighborhood-Level Measures: Ecometrics	p. 29
Overall Methodological Issues for Community and Neighborhood Measurement	p. 31
Specifying Neighborhood as a Social and Geographic Unit	p. 31
Administrative Boundaries	p. 31
Resident-Perceived Neighborhoods	p. 32
Physical and Spatial Characteristics	p. 32
Activity Spaces	p. 33
Considerations in Selecting the Unit of Analysis	p. 34
Objective Versus Subjective Neighborhood Measurement	p. 34
Engaging Community Partners in the Selection of Measures	p. 36
Using New Technology to Measure Neighborhoods	p. 39
Conclusion	p. 41
Chapters on Measurement Instruments
Chapter 4 Community Readiness and Capacity for Change	p. 46
Defining Community Readiness and Capacity	p. 46
Community Readiness Model	p. 47
Community Capacity for Change	p. 49
Measuring Community Readiness and Capacity	p. 49
Measures of Community Readiness	p. 50
Measures of Community Capacity	p. 52
Combined Measures of Community Readiness and Capacity	p. 55
Conclusion	p. 57
Chapter 5 Strategic Collective Action in Communities	p. 82
The Importance of Measuring Strategic Collective Action	p. 82
Methods for Measuring Strategic Collective Action	p. 84
Measures of Strategic Collective Action	p. 85
Participation, Representation, and Activities	p. 86
Power	p. 88
Collaboration	p. 90
Coalitions	p. 91
Conclusion	p. 94
Chapter 6 Social Connections and Processes in Communities	p. 114
Why Is It Important to Measure Social Connections and Processes in Communities?	p. 114
Sense of Community (SOC) Measures	p. 115
Construct Validity of the SOC	p. 119
SOC as an Individual- and Community-Level Construct	p. 119
Measures of Neighborhood Social Processes	p. 119
Collective Efficacy	p. 120
Neighborhood Matters Measure	p. 121
Social Capital Measures	p. 122
Saguaro Seminar on Civic Engagement	p. 122
Social Capital Measure From the Project on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods	p. 125
More Recent Social Capital Measures	p. 126
Conclusion	p. 128
Chapter 7 Community Empowerment and Engagement	p. 156
Why Is It Important to Measure Community Empowerment and Engagement?	p. 156
Empowerment in Communities	p. 157
Psychological Empowerment Measures	p. 159
Community Empowerment Measure	p. 162
Sociopolitical Control Measures	p. 163
Community and Citizen Participation	p. 166
Defining Community and Citizen Participation	p. 167
Measures of Community and Citizen Participation	p. 167
Civic Engagement	p. 172
Defining Civic Engagement	p. 172
Civic Engagement Measures	p. 172
Conclusion	p. 176
Chapter 8 Community Resources and Resident Satisfaction	p. 212
Defining Community Resources and Satisfaction	p. 212
Community Resources	p. 212
Community Satisfaction	p. 213
Satisfaction With Public Services	p. 213
The Relationship Between Community Satisfaction and Satisfaction With Public Services	p. 213
Why Measure Community Resources and Satisfaction?	p. 214
Methods Used to Measure Community Resources and Satisfaction	p. 216
Measures of Community Resources	p. 219
Observation-Based Measures of Resources	p. 219
Survey-Based Measures of Resources	p. 220
Combining Observations and Survey Methods to Measure Community Resources	p. 221
Measures of Community Satisfaction	p. 221
Measures of Satisfaction With Public Services	p. 224
Conclusion	p. 226
Chapter 9 The Built Environment Influencing Healthy Living	p. 249
Why Is It Important to Measure the Built Environment?	p. 249
How Is the Built Environment Measured?	p. 250
Overview of Measures	p. 251
Neighborhood Food Environment	p. 251
Walkability of Neighborhoods	p. 256
Recreation in Neighborhoods	p. 258
Conclusion	p. 259
Chapter 10 Housing and Neighborhood Change	p. 296
Why Are Measures Related to Housing and Neighborhood Change Important?	p. 296
Housing Measures	p. 297
Measures of Housing Quality	p. 297
Measures of Housing Affordability	p. 299
Measures of Housing Market Strength	p. 301
Neighborhood Change Measures	p. 303
Measures of Vacancy, Abandonment, and Blight	p. 303
Measures of Residential Mobility and Housing Unit Turnover	p. 305
Measures of Gentrification and Displacement	p. 307
Conclusion	p. 309
Chapter 11 Community Disorder, Crime, and Violence	p. 332
Why Is It Important to Measure Disorder, Crime, and Violence?	p. 332
Community Disorder and Order Measures	p. 334
Defining Community Disorder and Order	p. 334
Measures of Community Disorder and Order	p. 335
Fear of Crime	p. 339
Defining Fear of Crime	p. 340
Measures of Fear of Crime	p. 341
Exposure to Community Violence	p. 344
Defining Exposure to Community Violence	p. 344
Measures of Exposure to Community Violence Among Children and Adolescents	p. 345
Measures of Exposure to Community Violence Among Adults	p. 348
Crime, Violence, and Related Data	p. 351
Conclusion	p. 353
Chapter 12 Place-Based Social Exclusion and Inequity	p. 389
Measuring Community Social Disadvantage	p. 389
Quantifying Place-Based Segregation by Race, Ethnicity, and Income	p. 391
Minority-Majority Group Measures of Segregation	p. 391
Multiple Group Segregation Measures	p. 392
Economic Segregation Measures	p. 393
Spatial Segregation Measures	p. 394
Community Diversity Measures	p. 396
Measurement of Neighborhood Racial and Ethnic Diversity	p. 396
Measuring Income Diversity in Neighborhoods	p. 397
Measuring Access to Opportunity	p. 398
Measures of Job Access	p. 399
Measures of Access to Services and Amenities	p. 400
Conclusion	p. 401
Chapter 13 Community Well-Being and Quality of Life	p. 427
Defining Well-Being/Quality of Life	p. 427
Individual Well-Being	p. 428
Social Well-Being	p. 428
Community or Neighborhood Well-Being	p. 429
Why Measure Neighborhood Well-Being/Quality of Life?	p. 429
As an Alternative to GDP	p. 430
As an Alternative to DAYL	p. 430
Well-Being Measures	p. 431
Facet-Based Measures of Individual Well-Being That Include Community/Neighborhood Components	p. 431
Global Measures of Community/Neighborhood Well-Being	p. 432
Facet-Based Indicators of Community/Neighborhood Well-Being	p. 433
Measures Used in Surveys	p. 434
Measures That Use Administrative Data	p. 435
Measures That Combine Survey Items and Administrative Data	p. 436
Conclusion	p. 437
Index	p. 456

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