Publication Type: Proceeding

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: This paper presents an examination of efforts to reconstruct an urban ideal in the face of the current challenges posed by contemporary metropolitan patterns and the development regime that has driven the shaping of urban and suburban landscapes for the last half century. A central component of this urban ideal is the coupling of a civic sensibility to a kind of self-organizing diversity, with echoes of Chicago School conceptions of ecological processes, but with radically different implications for planning practice because of a focus on form over function. In both its successes and failures, the reconstruction of planning practice over the last decade has profound implications for the politics of land use, environmental responsibility, and social equity. The general theoretical discussion is grounded in empirical cases drawn from extensive field work as a participant observer in the anti-sprawl movement. The paper is a contribution to the discussion of democratic theory and practice, responding to work such as Eliasoph, Avoiding Politics, and Hibbing et al, Stealth Democracy, in the specific context of the politics of place-making at the scale of the neighborhood, the city, and the region. It also proposes a re-formulation of the usual understanding of the relationship between place and social capital.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Skateboarding is an increasingly popular activity among teenagers, especially among boys. But skateboarding in public space disrupts the urban order, as it is an unintended use of space shared by others in the community. Studies have approached teen skateboarding from various perspectives including subculture, postmodern geography, sport, and gender. This ethnographic study of street skating among suburban teenagers explores the ways in which a suburban community regulates skateboarding in public places, and how teenage skaters negotiate the constraints imposed upon their activities. I find that a suburban community attempts to regulate and control skateboarding activities by building a skate park, implementing prohibitive devices, making skateboarding in public spaces illegal, and monitoring activities. The examination of the skateboarders’ tactics of overcoming such constraints shows their ability to relocate their activity and continue to maintain certain level of autonomy over where and how they skate. The study concludes that space, time and the way space is used determine the types of regulation on a public behavior, and whether such attempts are successful.

Publication Type: Abstract
Abstract: Numerous recent studies have addressed how Internet usage affects social capital using place-based (Stern & Dillman, 2006) and national level data (Boase, 2006). However, by focusing on the number of ways to measure social capital and how Internet usage affects these measures, the research has largely ignored three important questions. First, how are people using the Internet to their benefit them in their daily lives? Second, does the type of beneficial usage differ by community type (rural, suburban, and urban)? Finally, what role does Internet proficiency play in capitalizing on this technology across communities? We argue here that these three issues (types of usage, place, and proficiency) are interrelated and fundamental to understanding the role of the Internet in modern life. Using data from the nationally representative Pew Internet and American Life Study, we address these three issues and provide further insight into the role of the Internet in modern life.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript