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. |
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Page 59
... organizational mem- berships fell by 16 percent , and church attendance ( a topic that we shall ad- dress more directly in a moment ) declined by 20 percent . Examined more closely , these surveys found significant declines in ...
... organizational mem- berships fell by 16 percent , and church attendance ( a topic that we shall ad- dress more directly in a moment ) declined by 20 percent . Examined more closely , these surveys found significant declines in ...
Page 62
... organizational activity has always been relatively modest on any given day , since even faithful reading groups or service clubs usually meet only once a week or once a month , not once a day . Nevertheless , the diaries show clearly ...
... organizational activity has always been relatively modest on any given day , since even faithful reading groups or service clubs usually meet only once a week or once a month , not once a day . Nevertheless , the diaries show clearly ...
Page 63
... organizational slumps reported here come from four entirely differ- ent streams of evidence - different sampling techniques , different survey orga- nizations , different questions - but each is based on tens of thousands of interviews ...
... organizational slumps reported here come from four entirely differ- ent streams of evidence - different sampling techniques , different survey orga- nizations , different questions - but each is based on tens of thousands of interviews ...
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activities adults African Americans American analysis of DDB Author's analysis average Barry Wellman behavior boomers bowling chapter Chicago church attendance cities citizens civic disengagement civic engagement club meetings cohort community projects compared computer-mediated communication correlated DDB Needham decades decline Democracy demographic economic effects entertainment environmental evidence fewer figure forms fraction friends Gilded Age groups growth half important income individual Internet Journal less levels membership ment mobility National National Election Study nearly Needham Life Style neighborhood neighbors organizational organizations parents participation percent Political Trends surveys poll population predictor Progressive Era religion religious reported Research Robert Roper Social roughly Social and Political social capital social connectedness social networks Social Survey social trust society Statistics Style survey archive television Theda Skocpol tion turnout twentieth century University Press Urban virtually voluntary associations volunteering voting watching women workplace York