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Periodically, crime becomes a prominent issue in the politics of cities. In the past, politicians, police officials, and the media elevated crime to public and political agenda status for their own purposes. Increasingly, however, grassroots activists are raising crime as an issue and are organizing to cope with it in their communities. The type and posture of these organizations differ significantly. The postures that anticrime activists adopt are largely decided by their perspectives toward (1) the legitimacy of governmental authority and (2) their sense of efficacy. These guiding orientations lead activists to fall into four basic categories that are labeled Negotiational, Adversarial, Delegational, and Alienated.

Objective. Recent trends in urban research emphasize the importance of local nonprofits & social capital in the revitalization of poor & minority neighborhoods. This article tests the idea that urban communities able to mobilize themselves by establishing development nonprofits & overcoming collective action problems will be better able to make use of urban-development policies. Methods. Measures operationalizing nonprofit presence & social capital are used in an empirical test to see if they can, through the medium of the Community Reinvestment Act, increase the number of mortgage & business loans in Washington, DC. Results. These variables show only weak effects on mortgage lending, but very strong results for small-business lending in all types of communities. Conclusions. The results suggest that nonprofits & social capital may have only limited benefit in the revitalization of urban neighborhoods & researchers & practitioners should be careful when relying on them. 4 Tables, 4 Figures, 42 References. Adapted from the source document.

Purpose. To determine the feasibility of a community-wide approach integrated with primary care (Cardiovascular Health Awareness Program [CHAP]) to promote monitoring of blood pressure (BP) and awareness of cardiovascular disease risk. Design. Demonstration project. Setting. Two midsized Ontario communities. Participants. Community-dwelling seniors. Intervention. CHAP sessions were offered in pharmacies and promoted to seniors using advertising and personalized letters from physicians. Trained volunteers measured BP, completed risk profiles, and provided risk-specific education materials. Method. We examined the distribution of risk factors among participants and predictors of multiple visits and elevated BP. Results. Opinion leaders aided recruitment of family physicians (n = 56/63) and pharmacists (n = 18/19). Over 90 volunteers were recruited. Invitations were mailed to 4394 seniors. Over 10 weeks, there were 4165 assessments of 2350 unique participants (approximately 30% of senior residents). 37.5% of attendees had untreated (16%; 360/2247) or uncontrolled (21.5%; 482/2247) high BP. Participants who received a letter (odds ratio [OR] 2.5, 95% confidence interval [CI] 2.1–3.0), had an initial elevated BP (OR 1.2, 95% CI 1.0–1.5), or reported current antihypertensive medication (OR 1.4, 95% CI 1.1–1.6) were more likely to attend multiple sessions (p ≤ .05 for all). Older age (≥ 70 years; OR 1.5, 95% CI 1.3–1.8), BMI ≥ 30 (OR 1.7, 95% CI 1.4–2.2), current antihypertensive medication (OR 1.6, 95% CI 1.3–1.9), and diabetes (OR 2.4, 95% CI 1.9–3.2) predicted elevated BP (p < .001 for all). Conclusion. The program yielded learning about community mobilization and identified a substantial number of seniors with undiagnosed/uncontrolled high BP.

Describes major sociopolitical forces in modern Kenyan society, including political parties, bureaucracy, grassroots self-help movement (Harambee), rural and urban elites, the churches, and other actors.

Objective. Recent trends in urban research emphasize the importance of local nonprofits and social capital in the revitalization of poor and minority neighborhoods. This article tests the idea that urban communities able to mobilize themselves by establishing development nonprofits and overcoming collective action problems will be better able to make use of urban‐development policies.Methods. Measures operationalizing nonprofit presence and social capital are used in an empirical test to see if they can, through the medium of the Community Reinvestment Act, increase the number of mortgage and business loans in Washington, D.C.Results. These variables show only weak effects on mortgage lending, but very strong results for small‐business lending in all types of communities.Conclusions. The results suggest that nonprofits and social capital may have only limited benefit in the revitalization of urban neighborhoods and researchers and practitioners should be careful when relying on them.

Purpose: This article describes and proposes a model of the factors that influenced community members' initial mobilization, continuing effort, or lack of involvement in a community based-intervention on adolescents' sexual health in Nova Scotia, Canada. Design: This study was conducted within the constructivist paradigm and guided by the principles of grounded theory. Methods: Factors related to community members' initial and continued involvement were explored using analyses of the contents of in-depth interviews and written documentation through pattern identification, clustering of conceptual groupings, identification of relationships between variables, constant comparisons, and theoretical memos. Subjects: Respondents included 14 participants, the 12 members of the Board of Directors and two paid staff (i.e., the project coordinator and the health centre nurse). Results: Specific personal, community-related, and organizational factors have influenced community members' involvement in the project. These factors were grouped into an explanatory model.

peer-reviewed ; Intimate partner violence (IPV) is experienced by one-third of women globally, yet few programs attempt to shift men's IPV perpetration. Community mobilization is a potential strategy for reducing men's IPV perpetration, but this has rarely been examined globally. We conducted a mixed-methods process evaluation alongside a trial testing community mobilization in peri-urban South Africa. We used in-depth interviews (n=114), participant observation (160 h), and monitoring and evaluation data to assess program delivery. Qualitative data (verbatim transcripts and observation notes) were managed in Dedoose using thematic coding and quantitative data were descriptively analyzed using Stata13. We learned that outreach elements of community mobilization were implemented with high fidelity, but that critical reflection and local advocacy were difficult to achieve. The context of a peri-urban settlement (characterized by poor infrastructure, migrancy, low education, social marginalization, and high levels of violence) severely limited intervention delivery, as did lack of institutional support for staff and activist volunteers. That community mobilization was poorly implemented may explain null trial findings; in the larger trial, the intervention failed to measurably reduce men's IPV perpetration. Designing community mobilization for resource-constrained settings may require additional financial, infrastructural, organizational, or political support to effectively engage community members and reduce IPV.