The study of the effects of context--defined here as a
geographically bounded social unit--on individuals is a new and
rapidly developing field. This unique volume reviews this
development both quantitatively and qualitatively, examines how and
why individual political behavior can be influenced by various
contextual characteristics of the locality in which the individual
resides, and proposes a conceptual framework to guide future
research. A separate chapter is devoted to exploring methodological
problems unique to this field of study. This is the first study to
integrate and synthesize the diverse existing research and to
provide an overall approach to the field. While the authors'
conclusions do not contradict the dominant views in the field, they
do challenge prevailing emphases and approaches--stressing the
importance of structural and global effects, the utility of an
information-flow approach to contextual effects, and new
methodological strategies. Even readers without strong statistical
backgrounds will find this volume both accessible and
informative.
The volume first reviews the history of contextual studies,
defining contextual analysis, and offering a taxonomy of contextual
effects and then reviews relevant literature to integrate, compare,
and assess the range of empirical work in the field. Chapter three
constructs an overarching approach to the study of context based on
the concept of information flow and is followed by a discussion of
the methodological difficulties that have made the study of
contextual effects a contentious one. The increasingly important
area of modeling contextual effects is reviewed next and directions
for future research are suggested. The final chapter looks at
several understudied areas in contextual effects that could benefit
from scholarly attention. Though scholarly, this readable volume is
aimed at a broad audience and will be of particular interest to
those concerned with political behavior, including political
scientists, sociologists, urbanologists, geographers, and social
psychologists.
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