Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American CommunityOnce we bowled in leagues, usually after work—but no longer. This seemingly small phenomenon symbolizes a significant social change that Robert Putnam has identified in this brilliant volume, which The Economist hailed as “a prodigious achievement.” Drawing on vast new data that reveal Americans’ changing behavior, Putnam shows how we have become increasingly disconnected from one another and how social structures—whether they be PTA, church, or political parties—have disintegrated. Until the publication of this groundbreaking work, no one had so deftly diagnosed the harm that these broken bonds have wreaked on our physical and civic health, nor had anyone exalted their fundamental power in creating a society that is happy, healthy, and safe. Like defining works from the past, such as The Lonely Crowd and The Affluent Society, and like the works of C. Wright Mills and Betty Friedan, Putnam’s Bowling Alone has identified a central crisis at the heart of our society and suggests what we can do. |
From inside the book
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Page 51
Though these new groups often depend on financial support from ordinary
citizens and may speak faithfully on their behalf , they are not really composed of
citizen members in the same sense that a church congregation or a reading
group or ...
Though these new groups often depend on financial support from ordinary
citizens and may speak faithfully on their behalf , they are not really composed of
citizen members in the same sense that a church congregation or a reading
group or ...
Page 447
In the mid - 1970s Americans were about twice as likely to take an active role in
political campaigns as were citizens in Britain ... Russell Dalton , Citizen Politics :
Public Opinion and Political Parties in Advanced Western Democracies , 2nd ed .
In the mid - 1970s Americans were about twice as likely to take an active role in
political campaigns as were citizens in Britain ... Russell Dalton , Citizen Politics :
Public Opinion and Political Parties in Advanced Western Democracies , 2nd ed .
Page 495
Unfortunately , some passages of his essay confuse a ) a high degree of citizen
participation in a community with b ) a ... Robert Huckfeldt and John Sprague ,
Citizens , Politics , and Social Communication : Information and Influence in an ...
Unfortunately , some passages of his essay confuse a ) a high degree of citizen
participation in a community with b ) a ... Robert Huckfeldt and John Sprague ,
Citizens , Politics , and Social Communication : Information and Influence in an ...
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User Review - jonerthon - LibraryThingProbably the last of the older titles that has been on my reading list too long. Though it is dated in some ways, I was glad to finally get through this one and understand why so many planners have ... Read full review
LibraryThing Review
User Review - ddonahue - LibraryThingThe present withdrawal of the individual from social organizations now resembles the situation after WW I as depicted in Chapter IX of Eckstein's Rites of Spring, in which he describes veteran's eschewal of social commitments. Read full review
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Bibliographic information
| Title | Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community |
| Author | Robert D. Putnam |
| Edition | illustrated, reprint |
| Publisher | Simon & Schuster, 2001 |
| ISBN | 0743203046, 9780743203043 |
| Length | 544 pages |
| Subjects | › › History / Social History History / United States / 20th Century Political Science / Public Policy / General Social Science / General |
| Export Citation | BiBTeX EndNote RefMan |