2763406

7/28/2019 2763406

1/37

The City: Suggestions for the Investigation of Human Behavior in the City EnvironmentAuthor(s): Robert E. ParkReviewed work(s):Source: American Journal of Sociology, Vol. 20, No. 5 (Mar., 1915), pp. 577-612Published by: The University of Chicago PressStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2763406 .Accessed: 23/07/2012 12:18

Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at .http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp

.JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new formsof scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected].

.

The University of Chicago Press is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to American Journal of Sociology.

http://www.jstor.org
http://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=ucpresshttp://www.jstor.org/stable/2763406?origin=JSTOR-pdfhttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsphttp://www.jstor.org/stable/2763406?origin=JSTOR-pdfhttp://www.jstor.org/action/showPublisher?publisherCode=ucpress

7/28/2019 2763406

2/37

THE AMERICAN

JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY

VOLUMEXX MARCH I9I5 NUMBER5

THE CITY: SUGGESTIONS FOR THE INVESTIGATIONOF HUMANBEHAVIOR IN THE CITYENVIRONMENT

ROBERTE. PARKUniversity f Chicago

It will be convenient or the point of view proposed n thispaper to regard he city, not as a mere ongeries f persons ndsocial rrangements, ut as an institution.

An institution, ccording o Sumner, onsists f a "conceptand a structure." By concept, whichhe further efines s "anidea,notion, octrine, nterest," emeans rganized ttitudes up-ported y their ppropriate entiments. The structure," eadds,"is a framework, r apparatus, r perhaps nly number f func-tionaries et to co-operate n prescribed ays t a certain uncture.The structure olds he oncept nd furnishes he nstrumentalitiesfor ringing t into the world f facts nd action n a way to servethe nterests f men n society."'

The point s that n institution s a section f corporate umannature lus themachinery nd the nstrumentalities hrough hichthat human ature perates.

With his onception f an institution e can think f the city,that s to say, the place and the people,with ll the machinery,sentiments, ustoms, nd administrative evicesthat go with t,

' Sumner, Folkways: Study f he ociological mportancef Usages,Manners,Customs, ores, nd Morals, . 54.

577

7/28/2019 2763406

3/37

578 THE AMERICANJOURNALOF SOCIOLOGY

public pinion nd street ailways, he ndividualman nd the ools

that he uses, s something ore han mere ollective ntity. Wemay think f it as a mechanism-a psychophysical echanism-in and through hich rivate nd political nterests ind orporateexpression. Much of what we ordinarily egard s the city-itscharters, ormal rganization, uildings, treet railways, nd soforth-is, r seems o be, mere rtifact. However, t is onlywhenand in so far s these hings, hrough seand wont, onnect hem-selves, ike a tool in the hand of a man, with the vital forces

resident n individuals nd in the community hat they ssume heinstitutional orm. As the whole he city s a growth. It is theundesigned roduct f the abors f successive enerations f men.

I. THE CITY PLAN AND LOCAL ORGANIZATION

The city, particularly he modern American ity, trikes neat first lush s so little product f the rtless rocesses f natureand growth hat t s difficult orecognizets nstitutional haracter.

The ground lanofmostAmerican ities, or xample, s a checker-board. The unit of distance s the block. This geometrical ormsuggests hat the city s a purely rtificial onstruction, hichmight onceivably e taken apart and put together gain, ike ahouseof blocks.

The fact s, however, hat the city s rooted n the habits ndcustoms f the peoplewho inhabit t. The consequences thatthe city possesses moral s well as a physical rganization, nd

these two mutually nteract n characteristic ays to mold andmodify neanother. It is the tructure f he ity which mpressesus by ts visible astness nd complexity, ut this tructure asitsbasis,nevertheless, n humannature, f which t is an expression.On the other hand, this vast organization hich has arisen nresponse o the needs f ts nhabitants, nceformed,mpressestselfupon them s a crude external act, nd forms hem, n turn, naccordancewith the design nd interests hich t incorporates.

Thecity plan.-Itis because the city has what has here been

described s its institutional haracter hat there s a limit o thearbitrary odifications hich t is possible o make n its physicalstructure nd its moral rder.

7/28/2019 2763406

4/37

HUMANBEHAVIORIN THE CITY ENVIRONMENT 579

The city plan, for example, stablishesmetes and bounds,fixes n a generalway the ocation nd character f the city's on-structions, nd imposes n orderly rrangement, ithin he cityarea, upon the buildings hich re erected y private nitiative swell as by public authority. Within he limitations rescribed,however, he nevitable rocesses f humannature roceed o givethese egions nd these uildings character hich t s lesseasytocontrol. Under our system f ndividual wnership, or nstance,it is not possible odetermine n advancethe extent f concentra-tion of population n any given area. The city cannot fix andvalues, nd we leave to private nterprise, or he most part, thetask of determining he city's imits nd the location f its resi-dential nd industrial istricts. Personal astes nd convenience,vocational nd economic nterests, nfallibly end osegregate ndthus to classify he populations f great cities. In this way thecity acquires n organization hich s neither esigned or con-trolled.

Physical geography, atural advantages, nd the means oftransportation etermine n advance the general utlines f theurban plan. As the city increases n population, he subtlerinfluences f sympathy, ivalry, nd economic ecessity end tocontrol he distribution f population. Business nd manufactur-ing seek advantageous ocations nd draw around hem certainportion f the population. There pring p fashionable esidencequarters rom which hepoorer lasses re excluded ecauseof theincreased alue of the and. Then there row p slumswhich reinhabited y great numbers f the poorer lasseswho are unableto defend hemselves rom ssociation ith hederelict nd vicious.In the course f time very ection nd quarter f the city akes nsomething f the character nd qualities f ts nhabitants. Eachseparate part of the city s inevitably tained with the peculiarsentiments f ts population. The effect f this s to convert hatwas at first mere geographical xpression nto a neighborhood,that s to say, localitywith entiments, raditions, nd a history fits own. Within hisneighborhoodhecontinuity f the historicalprocesses s somehowmaintained. The past imposes tself ponthe present nd the ife f every ocalitymoves n with certain

7/28/2019 2763406

5/37

7/28/2019 2763406

6/37

7/28/2019 2763406

7/37


In many of the European cities, nd to some extent n thiscountry, econstructionf ity ife as gone othe ength fbuildinggarden uburbs, r replacing nhealthful nd run-down enementswith modelbuildings wned nd controlled y the municipality.

In American ities heattempt asbeenmadeto renovate vilneighborhoods y the construction f playgrounds nd the ntro-duction f supervised ports f various kinds, ncludingmunicipaldances n municipal ancehalis. Theseand other deviceswhichare intended rimarily o elevate he moral oneof the egregatedpopulations f great ities hould e studied n connection ith heinvestigation f the neighborhood n general. They should bestudied, n short, ot merely or heir wn sake but for what theycan reveal to us of human behavior nd humannature generally.

Colonies nd segregated reas.-In the city environment heneighborhood ends o lose much of the significance hich t pos-sessed n simpler nd moreprimitive orms f society. The easymeans of communication nd of transportation, hich enablesindividuals o distribute heir ttention nd to live at the sametime n several different orlds, ends o destroy hepermanencyand intimacy f the neighborhood. urther han that, whereindividuals f the same race or of the same vocation ive togetherin segregated roups, eighborhood entiment ends ofuse ogetherwith acial ntagonisms nd class nterests.

In this way physical nd sentimental istances einforce achother, nd the influences f local distribution f the populationparticipate with the influences f class and race in the evolutionof the ocialorganization. Every great ity has its racial olonies,like the Chinatowns f San Francisco nd New York, the LittleSicilyof Chicago, nd various other ess pronounced ypes. Inaddition o these,most citieshave their egregated icedistricts,like that which ntil ecently xisted n Chicago, nd their endez-vousfor riminals f various orts. Every arge ity has its occu-pational uburbs ike the Stockyards n Chicago, nd its residencesuburbs ikeBrooklinen Boston, achofwhich as the ize nd thecharacter f a complete eparate own, illage, r city, xcept hatits population s a selected ne. Undoubtedly he most remark-able of these cities within ities, of which the most nteresting

7/28/2019 2763406

8/37

HUMANBEHAVIORIN THE CITY ENVIRONMENT 583

characteristic s that they are composed of persons of the samerace, or of persons of different aces but of the same social class, isEast London, with a population of 2,000,000 laborers.

"The people f he riginal ast London ave now verflowedndcrossedtheLea,and pread hemselvesver he marshes ndmeadowseyond. Thispopulation as created ew ownswhichwere ormerlyural illages,WestHam,with population fnearly 00,000; ast Ham,with o,ooo; tratford,with ts "daughters," 5o,ooo;and other hamlets" imilarly vergrown.Includinghese ew opulations ehave n aggregatefnearly womillionsfpeople. Thepopulationsgreater han hat fBerlin r Vienna, r St.Peters-burg, r Philadelphia.

"It is a city ull f churchesndplaces fworship, et here reno cathe-drals, ither Anglican r Roman; it has a sufficient upply f elementaryschools, ut t has nopublic rhigh chool,nd t has nocollegesor hehighereducation nd no university; hepeople ll read newspapers, et there s noEast London aper xcept f the maller nd ocalkind .. . In the treetsthere re never een any private arriages; here s no fashionableuarter.. . .one meetsno ladies n the principal horoughfares. eople, hops,houses, onveyances-all ogether re stampedwith he unmistakableealof the working lass.

"Perhaps he trangest hing f all is this: in a city f twomillions fpeople here renohotels! Thatmeans, f ourse, hat here renovisitors."'In the older cities of Europe, where the processesof segregation

have gone farther, eighborhood istinctions re likely to be moremarked than they re in America. East London is a city of a singleclass, but within he limits of that city the population s segregatedagain and again by racial and vocational interests. Neighborhoodsentiment, deeply rooted in local tradition and in local custom,

exercises a decisive selective influence upon city population andshows tself ltimately n a marked way in the characteristics f theinhabitants.

What we want to know of these neighborhoods, acial com-munities, nd segregated ity areas, existing within or on the outeredge of great cities, is what we want to know of all other socialgroups.

What re the lements fwhich hey re composedTo what xtent re they heproduct f selective rocessHow dopeople et nandout of hegroup hus ormed?What re the relative ermanencend stability f their opulations?

I Walter esant, ast London, pp. 7-9.

7/28/2019 2763406

9/37

584 THE AMERICAN JOURNALOF SOCIOLOGY

What about the age, sex, and social condition f the peopleWhat about the children How many of them are born, nd how

many of them remain?What is the history f the neighborhood? What is there n the sub-consciousness-in the forgotten r dimly remembered xperiences-ofthis neighborhood hich determines ts sentiments nd attitudes?

What is there n clear consciousness, .e., what are its avowed senti-ments, octrines, tc. ?

What does it regard s matter f fact What s news What s thegeneral run of attention? What models does it imitate and are thesewithin r without he group?

What s the ocial ritual, .e., what thingsmust ne do in the neighbor-hood in order o escape being regarded with uspicion r looked upon aspeculiar

Who are the leaders What interests f the neighborhood o theyincorporate n themselves nd what s the technique y which hey xercisecontrol

II. INDUSTRIAL ORGANIZATIONAND THE MORAL ORDER

The ancient ity was primarily fortress, placeof refuge ntime fwar. The modern ity, n the ontrary, sprimarily con-venience f commerce nd owes ts existence o the market lacearound which it sprang up. Industrial competition nd thedivision f abor, whichhave probably onemost to develop helatent powers f mankind, re possible nly upon condition f theexistence fmarkets, fmoney nd other evices or hefacilitationof trade nd comnmerce.

An old German dagedeclares hat "city air makesmen free"(StadtLuft macht rei). This is doubtless reference o the dayswhen the free cities of Germany njoyed the patronage f theemperor, nd aws madethe fugitive erf free man, fhesucceededfor year and a day in breathing ity ir. Law, of itself, ouldnot, however, avemade the craftsman ree. An open market nwhich emight ell the products f his aborwas a necessary nci-dent of his freedom, nd it was the application f the moneyeconomy o the relations f master nd man that completed he

emancipation f the erf.Vocational lasses nd vocational ypes.-The old adage whichdescribes hecity s the natural nvironment f the free man still

7/28/2019 2763406

10/37

HUMAN BEHAVIOR IN THECITY ENVIRONMENT 585

holds o far s the ndividualmanfinds n the hances, he diversityof nterests nd tasks, nd in the vast unconscious o-operation fcity ife, heopportunity o choosehis own vocation nd develophis peculiar ndividual alents. The city offers market or thespecial talents f ndividualmen. Personal ompetition ends oselect for ach special task the individualwho is best suited toperform t.

"The difference f natural alents n different en s, n reality, uchless hanweare aware f; and thevery ifferent enius hich ppears o dis-tinguish en f different rofessions, hen rown p to maturity, s not uponmany ccasionsomuch he ause, s the ffect f he division f abour. Thedifferenceetween hemost issimilarharacters, etween philosopherndacommontreet orter, or xample,eems o arise ot omuch rom ature, sfrom abit, ustom, nd education. When hey ame nto he world, nd forthe irst ix r ight ears f heir xistence,heywere erhaps erymuch like,and neither heir parents or playfellows ouldperceive ny remarkabledifference. bout that age, or soon after, hey ometo be employedndifferent ccupations.Thedifferencef alents omes hen o be taken oticeof, nd widens y degrees, ill t last the vanity f the philosophers willing

to acknowledgecarceany resemblance. ut without he disposition otruck, arter, nd exchange,verymanmust aveprocured o himself verynecessary nd conveniencyf ifewhich e wanted. All musthavehad thesame uties o perform, ndthe amework o do, ndthere ould avebeennosuch ifference f mployments could lonegive ccasionoanygreat iffer-ence f talent.....

"As it is the power f exchanginghat gives ccasion o the division flabour, o the xtent f this divisionmust lways elimited y the xtent fthat power, r, n otherwords, y the xtent f the market.. . There resomesorts f industry, ven of the owestkind,which an be carried nnowhere ut n a great own."'-

Success, under conditions of personal competition, dependsupon concentration upon some single task, and this concentrationstimulates hedemand or ationalmethods, echnical evices, ndexceptional skill. Exceptional skill, while based on natural talent,requires special preparation, and it has called into existence thetrade nd professional chools, nd finally ureausfor vocational

guidance. All of these, either directly r indirectly, erve atonce to select and emphasize ndividual ifferences.I AdamSmith, he Wealth f Nations, p. 28-29.

7/28/2019 2763406

11/37


Every device which facilitates rade and industry reparesthe way for a further ivision f labor and so tends further ospecialize he tasks n which men find heir ocations.The outcome f his rocess s to break down r modify he lderorganization f society, which was based on family ies, localassociations, n culture, aste, nd status, nd to substitute or t anorganization asedon vocational nterests.

In the city, every vocation, ven that of a beggar, ends toassume the character f a profession, nd the disciplinewhichsuccessn any vocation mposes, ogether ith he ssociations hat

it enforces, mphasizes his tendency.The effect f the vocations nd the division f abor s to pro-duce, n the first nstance, ot socialgroups, ut vocational ypes,the actor, heplumber, nd the umber-jack. The organizations,like he rade nd abor unions,whichmen f the ametrade r pro-fession orm re based on common nterests. n this respect heydiffer rom orms f association ike the neighborhood, hich rebasedon contiguity, ersonal ssociation, nd the common iesof

humanity. The different rades and professions eem disposedto group hemselvesn classes, hat s to say, the artisan, usiness,and professional lasses. But in the modem democratic tatethe classes have as yet attained no effective rganization. Social-ism,founded n an effort ocreate n organization asedon "classconsciousness,"asnever ucceeded ncreating ore han politicalparty.

The effects f the division f abor s a disciplinemay herefore

be best studied n the vocational ypes t has produced.Among hetypes which t wouldbe interesting o study re: theshopgirl, hepoliceman,hepeddler, hecabman, henightwatchman,the lairvoyant,he audevilleerformer,he uack octor, he artender,the wardboss, he trike-breaker,he abor gitator, he chool eacher,the reporter, he tockbroker,hepawnbroker; ll of these re character-istic roducts f he onditions f ity ife; ach,with ts pecialxperience,insight, nd point f view, etermines or ach vocational roup nd forthe ity s a whole ts ndividuality.

Towhat xtent s the grade f ntelligenceepresentedn thedifferenttrades ndprofessionsependent ponnatural bility?To what extent s intelligence etermined y the character f the

occupationnd the conditions nderwhich t is practiced

7/28/2019 2763406

12/37

HUMANBEHAVIOR IN THE CITYENVIRONMENT 587

To what extent s success n the occupationsdependent pon soundjudgment nd common-sense; o what extent upon technical bility?

Does native ability r specialtraining etermine uccess n the differ-ent vocationsWhat prestige nd what prejudices attach to different rades and

professions nd why?Is the choice of the occupation determined y temperamental, y

economic, r by sentimental onsiderations?In what occupations o men, n what occupations o women, ucceed

better, nd why?How far s occupation, rather than association, responsible or the

mental attitude and moral predilections? Do men in the same pro-fession r trade, but representing ifferent ationalities nd different ul-tural groups, hold characteristic nd identical opinions?

To what extent s the social or political creed, that is, socialism,anarchism, yndicalism, tc., determined y occupation by temperament

To what xtent ave socialdoctrine nd social dealism uperseded ndtaken the place of religious aith n the different ccupations, nd why

Do social classes tend to assume the character f cultural groups?That is to say, do the classes tend to acquire the exclusiveness nd inde-pendence f a caste or nationality; or s each classalwaysdependent pon

the existence f a corresponding lass ?To what extent do children ollow he vocations f their parents ndwhy?

To what extent do individuals move from ne class to another, ndhowdoes this fact modify hecharacter f class relationships

Newsand the mobility f the ocial group.-The division of abor,in making ndividual success dependent upon concentration pona special task, has had the effect f increasing he interdependenceof the different ocations. A social organization s thus created nwhich the individual becomes increasingly dependent upon thecommunity of which he is an indivisible part. The effect, nderconditions of personal competition, f this increasing nterdepend-ence of the parts is to create in the industrial organization s awhole a certain ort of social solidarity, ut a solidarity ased, noton sentiment nd habit, but on community f interests.

In the ense n which he erms re here sed, entiments the more on-crete, nterest hemore

bstract,erm. We

mayherish

sentiment orperson, place, r ny bjectwhatsoever. t may ea sentiment f version,or sentiment fpossession.But to possess r to be possessed y sentimentfor, r in regard o, anything eans hat we are ncapable f acting oward

7/28/2019 2763406

13/37


it in a thoroughly ational ay. It means hat he object f our entimentcorrespondsn some pecial wayto some nherited r acquired isposition.

Such dispositions the ffection f mother or er hild, hichs nstinctive.Or ven he eelinghemay ave or he hild's mpty radle, hichsacquired.The existence f a sentimental ttitude ndicates hat here re motives

for ction fwhich he ndividual ho s moved y hemsnotwholly onscious;motives verwhich e has only partial ontrol. Every entiment as ahistory, ither n the xperience f the ndividual, r n the xperiencef therace, ut he erson ho cts nthat entiment ay ot e aware f he istory.

Interests re directed ess toward pecific bjects han oward heendswhich his r hat articular bject t one ime r nother mbodies. nterestsimply, herefore,he xistence fmeans nd a consciousnessf the distinct-ionbetweenmeans nd ends.

Money s the cardinal evice y which alueshave become ationalizedand sentiments avebeenreplaced y interests. t is just becausewe feelno personal nd no sentimental ttitude oward ur money, uch s we dotoward, orexample, ur home, hat money ecomes valuablemeans fexchange.We willbe interested n acquiring certain mount f money norder oachieve certain urpose, utprovided hat urposemay eachievedin any ther ayweare ikely o be ust s well atisfied. t is only hemiserwhobecomesentimentalboutmoney, nd n that asehe s likely oprefer

one ort fmoney, aygold, oanother rrespectivef ts value. In this asethe alue fgold sdeterminedypersonal entiment ather han yreason.An organization which is composed of competing individuals

and of competing groups of individuals is in a state of unstableequilibrium, and this equilibrium can be maintained only by aprocess of continuous readjustment. This aspect of social lifeand this type of social organization are best represented n theworld of business which is the special object of investigation of

political economy.The extension of industrial rganization, which s based on theimpersonal relations defined by money, has gone forward hand inhand with an increasing mobility f the population. The laboringman and the artisan, fitted o perform specific ask, are compelledunder the conditions created by city life to move from ne regionto another in search of the particular kind of employment whichthey are fitted o perform. The tide of immigration which moves

back and forth between Europe and America is to some extent ameasure of this same mobility.'I Walter Bagehot, The Postulates f Political Economy, ondon, I885, pp. 7-8.

7/28/2019 2763406

14/37

HUMAN BEHAVIOR IN THE CITY ENVIRONMENT 589

On the other hand, the tradesman, hemanufacturer, hepro-fessional an, he pecialist nevery ocation, eekshis lients s thedifficulties f travel and communication ecreaseover an ever-widening rea of territory. his is another way in which themobility f the populationmay be measured. However,mobilityin an individual r in a population s measured, ot merely ychange f location, ut rather y the number nd variety f thestimulations o which he ndividual r the population esponds.Mobility epends, ot merely pon transportation, ut upon com-munication. Education nd the ability o read, the extension fthe money conomy o an ever-increasing umber f the nterestsof ife n so far s it has tended o depersonalizeocial relations-all these have vastly ncreased hemobility f modern eoples.

The term mobility, ike its correlative, solation, overs a wide range ofphenomena. It may represent t the same time character nd a condition.Asisolationmaybe due to the existence f purely hysical arriers ocom-munication, r to a peculiarity f temperament nd a lack of education, omobilitymaybe a consequence f the natural means f communication, r of n

agreeablemanner nd a college ducation.It is now clearly ecognized hat what we ordinarily all a lack of ntelli-gence n individuals, aces, nd communities, s frequently result f solation.On the other hand, the mobility f a population s unquestionably verylarge factor n its intellectual evelopment.

There s an intimate onnection etween he immobility f the primitiveman and his so-called nability o use abstract deas. The knowledgewhichpeasant ordinarily ossesses, rom he very nature f his occupation, sconcreteand personal. He knows ndividually nd personally very member f theflock e tends. He becomes n the course of years o attached o the and hetills that the mere transposition rom he strip f soil on which he has grownup, to another with which he is less intimately cquainted s felt by him as apersonal oss. For such a man the neighboring alley, or even the strip ofland at the other nd of the village s in a certain ense lien territory. A largepart of the peasant's efficiency s an agricultural aborer depends upon thisintimate nd personal acquaintance with the idiosyncrasies f a single plotof and to the care of whichhe has been bred. It is apparent hat under on-ditions ike these, ery ittle f the peasant's practical knowledgewill take theabstract form f scientific eneralization. He thinks n concrete erms be-causehe knows nd needs no other.

On the other hand, the intellectual haracteristics f the Jew and hisgenerally ecognized nterest n abstract nd radical deas are unquestionablyconnectedwith the fact that the Jews re, before ll else, a city folk. 'The

7/28/2019 2763406

15/37


Wandering ew' acquires bstract ermswithwhich o describe hevarioussceneswhich e visits. His knowledgef the world s based upon dentitiesand differences, hat s to say, on analysis nd classification. eared nintimate ssociation ith he bustle nd business f the market lace, on-stantly ntent n the shrewd nd fascinating ameof buying nd selling nwhich eemployshatmost nteresting f bstractions, oney, e has neitheropportunity or nclination o cultivate hat ntimate ttachment oplacesand persons hich s characteristicf the mmobile erson.'

Concentration of populations in cities, the wider markets, thedivision of labor, the concentration f individuals and groups on

special tasks, have continually changed the material conditionsof life, and in doing this have made readjustments to novelconditions ncreasingly ecessary. Out of this necessity here havegrown up a number of special organizations which exist for thespecial purpose of facilitating hese readjustments. The marketwhichbrought hemodem city nto existence s one of these devices.More interesting, however, are the exchanges, particularly thestock exchange, nd the board of trade, where prices re constantly

being made in response to changes or rather he reports f changesin economic conditions all over the world.These reports, o far as they are calculated to cause readjust-

ments, have the character f what we call news. It is the existenceof a critical situation which converts what were otherwise mereinformation nto news. Where there s an issue at stake; where,in short, there s crisis, there nformation which might affect heoutcome one way or another becomes "live matter," as the news-

paper men say. Live matter s news; dead matter s mere nforma-tion.What s the relation f mobility osuggestion,mitation, tc.What re he ractical evices ywhich uggestibilityndmobility re

increasedn a community r n an individual?Are there athologicalonditionsn communitiesorrespondingo

hysteria n individuals? f so, howare they produced nd howcon-trolled

To what xtent s fashion n indication f mobility?What s the differencen the manner n which ashions nd customsaretransmitted?

t Cf.W. I. Thomas, ource ook f ocialOrigins, . I69.

7/28/2019 2763406

16/37

HUMANBEHAVIOR IN THE CITY ENVIRONMENT 59I

What re he haracteristics f progressive, hat he haracteristicsof static, ommunityn respect o ts resistance o novel uggestions?

What mental haracteristicsf the gypsy, f the hobo, nd of thenomad enerally an be traced o these omadic abits?

The tock xchangesnd themob.-The exchanges, ponwhichwemay watch the fluctuation f prices n response o the news ofeconomic onditions n different arts of the world, re typical.Similar readjustments re taking place in every department fsocial ife,where, owever, hedevicesfor making hesereadjust-ments re not so complete nd perfect. For example, he pro-fessional nd trade papers, which keep the professions nd thetrades nformedn regard onewmethods, xperiences,nd devices,serve o keep the members f these rades nd professions breastof the times, which means that they facilitate eadjustments ochangig condcitions.

There is, however, his important istinction o be made:Competition n the exchanges s more ntense; changes re morerapid nd, s far s the ndividuals irectly oncerned, oremomen-tous. In contrast ith uch constellation f forces s we find nthe exchanges, here ompeting ealersmeet to buy and sell, somobile form f socialorganization s the crowd nd the mobexhibits relative tability.

It is a commonplace hat decisive actors n the movements fcrowds s in the fluctuations f markets re psychologic. Thismeans hat mong he ndividuals ho makeup the crowd r whocompose hepublicwhich articipates n the movements eflectedin the market, condition f nstability xistswhich orrespondsto what has been defined lsewhere s crisis. It is true of theexchanges, s it is of crowds, hat the situation heyrepresent salwayscritical, hat s to say, the tensions re such that a slightcausemayprecipitate n enormous ffect. Thecurrent uphemism"the psychological oment" efines uch critical ondition.

Psychologicalmomentsmay arise n any social situation, utthey ccurmore requentlyn a societywhich asacquired highstate of mobility. They occurmore requentlyn a societywhereeducation s general,where ailways, elegraph, nd the primtingpress have become n indispensable art of the social economy.

7/28/2019 2763406

17/37


They occur more requently n cities han n smaller ommunities.In the crowd nd the public every moment may be said to be"psychological."

Crisismaybe said to be the normal ondition n the xchanges.WVhatre called financial rises re merely n extension f thiscritical ondition o the larger business ommunity. Financialpanicswhich ometimes ollow ponfinancial rises re a precipitateof this ritical ondition.

The fascinating hing bout the tudy f crises, s of crowds, sthat o far s they re in fact due to psychologicalauses, hat s,so far as they re the result f the mobility f the communitiesin which hey ccur, hey an be controlled. The evidence or hisis the fact that they an be manipulated, nd there s abundantevidence f manipulation n the transactions f the stock market.The evidencefor the manipulation f crowds s less accessible.Labororganizations ave,however, nown ow to develop prettydefinite echnique or he nstigation nd control f strikes. TheSalvationArmy has worked ut a book of tactics which s verylargely evoted o the handling f street rowds; nd professionalrevivalists, ike Billy Sunday, have an elaborate technique orconducting heir evivals.

Under the title of collective psychology much has been written nrecent years in regard o crowds nd kindred phenomena f social life.Most that has been written hus far has been based upon general bserva-tion, nd almost no systematic methods xist for he study f this type ofsocial organization. The practical methods whichpractical men ike the

political oss, the abor gitator, hestock-exchange peculator, nd othershave worked ut for the control nd manipulation f the public and thecrowdfurnish body of materials romwhich t spossible omake a moredetailed, more ntimate tudy of what may be called, n order o dis-tinguish t from hat of more highly rganized roups, ollective ehavior.

In addition to these and other materials already indicated, thereare the histories f notable mass movements, he great abor strikes, hefinancial anics, religious evivals, tc.

A study might e made also of the sensations nd emotional eactionsof individuals who participate n these mass movements. What is themental ondition f ndividuals nder he nfluence f revivals, f panics,etc. ? Is there sense of oss of control, nd of oss of personal esponsi-bility

7/28/2019 2763406

18/37

HUMAN BEHAVIOR IN Tl1ECITY ENVIRONMENT 593

To what extent oes the participant n a mass movement eelexalta-tion or depression? What is the difference n the feelingswhich ccom-pany financial anics and religious revivals? to what extent are theseeffects emporary to what extent re they permanent

What devices have been used to prevent inancial anic? what devicesto dispersemobs?

III. SECONDARY RELATIONS AND SOCIAL CONTROL

Modernmethods f urban ransportation nd communication-the electric railway, he automobile, nd the telephone-havesilently nd rapidly hanged nrecent ears he ocial nd ndustrialorganization f the modern ity. They have been the means ofconcentrating raffic n the business istricts; have changed hewhole haracter f retail rade,multiplying he residence uburbsand making hedepartment torepossible. Thesechanges n theindustrial rganization nd in the distribution f population avebeen accompanied y corresponding hanges n the habits, enti-ments, nd character f the urban population.

The general nature of these changes s indicated y the factthat hegrowth f citieshas been accompanied y the ubstitutionof indirect, secondary," ordirect, ace-to-face, primary" ela-tions n the associations f ndividuals n the community.

"By primary roups mean those characterized y intimate ace-to-faceassociation nd co-operation. They are primary n several enses,but chieflyin that they are fundamental n forming he social nature nd ideals of theindividual. The result of intimate ssociation, psychologically, s a certainfusion f ndividualities n a commonwhole, o that one's very elf, ormany

purposes t least, s the common ife nd purpose of the group. Perhaps thesimplest way of describing hiswholeness s by saying hat t is a 'we'; it in-volves the sort of sympathy nd mutual dentification orwhich we' is thenatural expression. One lives in the feeling f the wholeand finds he chiefaims of his will n that feeling. . . ."I

Touch and sight, physical contact, re the basis for the first nd mostelementary human relationships. Mother and child, husband and wife,father nd son,master nd servant, insman nd neighbor,minister, hysician,and teacher; these re the most ntimate nd real relationships f ife nd in thesmall community hey re practically nclusive.

The interactions hich ake place among he members f a community oconstituted re immediate nd unreflecting. ntercourse s carried n largely

I Charles orton ooley, ocialOrganization,. I5.

7/28/2019 2763406

19/37


within he region f nstinct nd feeling. Socialcontrol rises, or he mostpart pontaneously, n direct esponseo personal nfluencesnd public enti-ment. It is the result f personal ccommodationather han he formula-tion f rational ndabstract rinciple.

The church, he school, nd the family.-In a great city, wherethe population s unstable, where parents nd children re employedout of the house and often n distant parts of the city, where thou-sands of people live side by side for years without so much as abowing acquaintance, these intimate relationships f the primarygroup are weakened and the moral order which rested upon

them is gradually dissolved.Under the disintegrating nfluences of city life most of our

traditional institutions, he church, the school, and the family,have been greatly modified. The school, for example, has takenover some of the functions f the family. It is around the publicschool and its solicitude for the moral and physical welfare f thechildren that something ike a new neighborhood nd communityspirit tends to get itself organized.

The church, on the other hand, which has lost much of itsinfluence ince the printed page has so largely taken the placeof the pulpit in the interpretation f life, seems at present to bein process of readjustment to the new conditions.

It is important hat the church, heschool, nd the family houldbe studied rom he point f view f his eadjustmento the onditionsofcity ife.

What hanges ave taken lace n recent ears n the family enti-ments? n the attitudes f husbands oward wives?of wives owardhusbands? f children oward arents, tc.?What do the records f the uvenile nd morals ourts ndicate nregard o this matter?

In what regions f social life have the mores on the subject of thefamily ife hanged?

To what xtent ave hese hanges aken lace nresponseothe nflu-ences f the city nvironment?

Similarly nvestigations ight e carried n with eference o theschool nd he hurch. Here, oo, heresa changedttitude nd hanged

policy n response oa changed nvironment. his s important ecauseit is, n the ast analysis, pon hese nstitutionsn which he mmediateandvital nterests f ife ind corporate xpressionhat ocial rganiza-tion ltimately ests.

7/28/2019 2763406

20/37


It is probably he breaking own of ocal attachments nd theweakening f the restraints nd inhibitions f the primary roup,under the nfluence f the urban environment, hich re largelyresponsible or he ncrease f vice and crime n great cities. Itwouldbe interesting n this onnection o determine y investiga-tion how far the ncrease n crime eepspace with he ncreasingmobility f the population. It is from his point ofview that weshould eek to interpret ll those tatistics hich egister hedis-integration f the moral rder, or xample he tatistics f divorce,of truancy, nd of crime.

What s the effect f ownership f property, articularly f the home,on truancy, n divorce, nd on crime?

In what regions nd classesare certain kinds of crime ndemic?In what classes does divorce occur most frequently? What is the

difference n this respect etween armers nd, say, actors?To what extent n any given racial group, or example, he Italians

in New York or the Poles in Chicago,do parents nd children ive in thesame world, peak the same anguage, nd share the same deas, and howfar do the conditions ound ccount for uvenile delinquency n that par-ticular groupHow far are the home mores responsible orcriminalmanifestationsof an immigrant roup?

Crisis and the ourts.-It is characteristic f city ife that allsorts f peoplemeet nd mingle ogether honever ully ompre-hend neanother. The anarchist nd the lubman, hepriest ndthe Levite, the actor and the missionary ho touch elbowsonthe treet, till ive n totally ifferent orlds. So complete s the

segregation f vocational lasses that it is possiblewithin helimits f the city o live n an isolation lmost s complete s thatof some remote ural ommunity.

Walter Besant tells hefollowing necdote f his experience seditor f the People's Palace Journal:

"In that capacity endeavored o encourage iterary ffort, n the hopeof ighting pon someunknown nd latent genius. The readers f the Journalwere hemembers f the various lassesconnectedwith he educational ide of

the place. They were younglerks

hiefly-some f them very good fellows.They had a debating society which I attended from ime to time. Alas!They carried n their debates n an ignorance he most profound, he mostunconscious, nd the most satisfied. I endeavored o persuade them that it

7/28/2019 2763406

21/37


was desirable t least o master he facts f the case before hey poke. Invain. Then proposed ubjects or ssays, nd offered rizes or erses. I

discovered,omy mazement, hat, mong ll the thousands f theseyoungpeople,ads and girls, here as notdiscoverablehe east udimentary ndica-tion of any iterary ower whatever. n all other owns here re youngpeoplewhonourish iterary mbitions, ith omemeasure f iterary bility.How should here e any n this own,where here ere obooks, o papers,no ournals, nd, t that ime, o free ibraries ",

In the immigrant olonies which are now well established inevery large city, foreign opulations live in an isolation which isdifferent rom hat of the population of East London, but in somerespects more complete.

The differences that ach one of these ittle olonies as a more r essindependentolitical ndsocial rganizationf ts own, nd s the enter fmore r essvigorous ationalist ropaganda.Forexample,ach ne of hesegroups as one or more apers rinted n its own anguage. n New YorkCity here re 70 publications, ost f hem upported y he ocal opulation,printed n 23 differentanguages. n Chicago here re 19 daily apers ub-lished n 7 foreign anguages ith combined ailycirculation f 368,0o0papers.

Under these conditions the social ritual and the moral orderwhich these immigrants brought with them from their nativecountries have succeeded in maintaining themselves for a con-siderable time under the influences f the American environment.Social control, based on the home mores, breaks down, however,in the second generation.

We may express the relation of the city to this fact in generalterms by saying that the effect f the urban environment s tointensify ll effects f crisis.

"Theterm crisis' s not obe understoodn violent ense. It is nvolvedin anydisturbance fhabit. There s a crisis n the boy's ifewhen e eaveshome. Theemancipationf the negro nd the mmigrationf the Europeanpeasant re group rises. Any train r crisis nvolveshree ossible hanges:greater itness, educed fficiency,r death. In biological erms, survival'means uccessfuldjustment ocrisis, ccompaniedypically y modificationof tructure. n man t means mental timulation ndgreater ntelligence,rmental epression,n caseoffailure."2

I Walter esant, ast London, . I3.2William I. Thomas, Race Psychology: tandpoint nd Questionnaire ith

Particular eference o the mmigrant nd Negro,"American ournal f Sociology,XVII (May, 9I2), p. 736.

7/28/2019 2763406

22/37

HUMANBEHAVIORIN THE CITYENVIRONMENT 597

Under heconditions mposed y city ife, n which ndividualsand groups f ndividuals, idely emovedn sympathy nd under-standing, ive together nder conditions f interdependence, fnot of ntimacy, he conditions f social control re greatly lteredand the difficulties ncreased.

Theproblem hus reated s usually haracterizeds one f assimilation.'It is assumed hat he eason or apid ncrease f rimenour arge ities s dueto the fact hat the foreign lement n our population as not succeedednassimilating merican ulture nd does not conform othe American ores.Thiswould e interesting,f true, ut the facts eem o suggest hat erhapsthe ruth must esought n the pposite irection.

"One of the most mportant acts stablished y the nvestigationon-cerns he American-born hildren f immigrants-the secondgeneration.'The records f onvictionsn the NewYorkCourt f General essions uringthe period rom ctober , I908, to June 0, I909, andof ll commitmentsoMassachusettsenal.nstitutions, xcept hose o the state farm, uring heyear nding eptember0, I909, form hebasis f this nalysis f he riminaltendenciesf the econd eneration.

"From hese ecordst appears hat clear endencyxists n thepart f

the econd enerationodiffer rom he first r mmigrant enerationn thecharacter f ts criminality. t also appears hat his ifference smuchmorefrequently n the direction f the criminality f the American-bornf non-immigrant arentage han t s n the pposite irection. hismeans hat hemovementf the econd-generationrime s awayfrom he rimes eculiar oimmigrantsnd owardhose f he Americanfnative arentage. Sometimesthismovement as carried econd-generationriminalityvenbeyond hat fthe native-born f native arentage. Of the second-generationroups ub-mitted othis omparison,nemaintains constant dherence othegeneralrule bove eferredo,while ll the thers t some oint ail o followt. Thisunique roup s the rish econd eneration."'

What we do observe, as a result of the crisis, s that controlthat was formerly ased on mores was replaced by control based onpositive aw. This change runs parallel to the movement by whichsecondary relationships have taken the place of primary relation-ships in the association of ndividuals n the city environment.

It ischaracteristicf theUnited tates hat reat olitical hangeshouldbeeffectedxperimentallynder he ressure f gitation rupon he nitiativeof small ut militant inorities. here s probably oother ountry n theworld nwhich omany reforms are n progresss at the resent ime n the

I Reports f the United tates mmigration ommission, ol. VI, pp. 4-I6.

7/28/2019 2763406

23/37


United States. Reform as in fact become kind of popular "indoor sport."The reforms hus effected, lmost without xception, nvolve some sort of

restriction r governmental ontrol ver activities hat were formerly free"or controlled nly by the mores nd public opinion.

The effect f this extension of what is called the police powerhas been to produce a change, not merely n the fundamental olicyof the law, but in the character nd standing of the courts.

The Juvenile and Morals courts illustrate a change which isperhaps taking place elsewhere. In these courts the judges haveassumed something of the functions of administrative officers,their duties consisting ess in the interpretation f law than in pre-scribing remedies and administering dvice intended to restoredelinquents brought before hem to their normal places in society.

A similar tendency to give judges a wide discretion and toimpose upon them a further esponsibility s manifest n thosecourts which have to deal with the technical ffairs f the businessworld, and in the growth n popularity of commissions n whichJudicial nd administrative functions re combined, for example,the Interstate Commerce Commission.

In order o interpret n a fundamental ay the facts n regard o socialcontrol t is important o start with a clear conception of the nature ofcorporate ction.

Corporatection egins hen here s some ort f ommunicationetweenindividuals ho constitute group. Communication ay take place atdifferentevels; that s, suggestions ay be given nd respondedoon theinstinctive, enso-motor, r ideo-motor evels. The mechanism f com-municationsvery ubtile, osubtile, n fact, hat t s often ifficult ocon-ceive how suggestions re conveyed from ne mind to another. This doesnot imply hat there s any special form f consciousness, ny special senseofkinship r consciousness f kind, necessary o explaincorporate ction.

In fact t has recently een shown hat n the case of certain ighly rgan-izedand static ocieties, ike that of the well-known nt, probably othing hatwe wouldcall communication akesplace.

"It is a well-known act that f an ant be removed rom nest and after-wardput back t will not be attacked, while lmost nvariably n ant belongingto another nest will be attacked. It has been customary o use the wordsmemory, nmity, riendship, n describing his fact. Now Bethe made thefollowingxperiment. n ant wasplaced n the iquids blood nd ymph)squeezed ut from he bodies f nest ompanionsnd was then ut back nto

7/28/2019 2763406

24/37

HUMANBEHAVIOR IN THE CITY ENVIRONMENT 599

its nest; it was not attacked. It was then put in the uice taken from heinmates f a 'hostile' nest and was at once attacked nd killed."'

A further nstance f the manner n which nts communicate ill llustratehow simple nd automatic ommunication aybecome n the nstinctive evel."An ant, when taking new direction rom he nest for the first ime,

always returns y the same path. This showsthat some trace must be leftbehind which erves s a guideback to the nest. If the ant returning y thispath bear no spoils,Bethefound hat no other nts try his direction. But if tbring ack honey r sugar, ther nts are sure to try he path. Hence some-thing f the substances arried ver this path by the ants must remain n thepath. These substancesmust be strong nough o affect he nts chemically."2

The important act s that by means of this comparatively impledevicecorporate ction is made possible.

Individuals not only react upon one another n this reflex way, but theyinevitably ommunicate heir entiments, ttitudes, nd organic xcitements,and in doing so they necessarily eact, not merely o what each individualactually does,but to what he intends, esires, r hopes to do. The fact thatindividuals ften etray entiments nd attitudes o others f which hey rethemselves nly dimly onsciousmakes t possible or ndividualA, for xample,to act upon motives nd tensions n B as soon or even beforeB is able to doso. Furthermore A may act upon the suggestions hat emanate from B

without himself eing clearly onscious f the source from whichhis motivesspring. So subtle nd intimate may the reactions e which ontrol ndividualswho are bound together n a social-psychological rocess.

It is upon the basis of this ort of nstinctive nd spontaneous ontrol hatevery more ormal ort of control must be based in order o be effective.

Changes in the form of social control may for the purposes ofinvestigation e grouped under the general heads:

i. Thesubstitution f positive aw for ustom, nd the xtension fmunicipalontrol o activities hatwere ormerlyeft o ndividualnitia-tive nd discretion.

2. The disposition f judges n municipal nd criminal ourts oassume dministrativeunctiono that he dministration f he riminallawceases o be a mere pplication f the ocial ritual nd becomes napplicationf rational nd technical ethods, equiringxpert nowledgeor dvice,norder orestore he ndividual osociety ndrepair he njurythat his delinquency as caused.

3. Changes nddivergencesn the mores mong hedifferentsolatedandsegregated roupsn the ity. What re the mores, or xample, fthe hopgirl the mmigrant thepolitician andthe abor gitatorI Jacques oeb,Comparativehysiologyf he rain, p. 220-2I.2Ibid., p. 22I.

7/28/2019 2763406

25/37

600 THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY

It shouldbe the aim of these nvestigations odistinguish ot merelythe causes of these changes, the direction n which they are moving,but also the forces hat are likely o minimize nd neutralize hem. Forexample, t is important oknowwhether hemotiveswhich re at presentmultiplying he positive restrictions n the individual will necessarilygo as far n this ountry s they have alreadydone n Germany. Will theyeventually ring bout a condition pproaching ocialism?

Commercialized ice and the iquor traffic.-Social ontrol, underthe conditions of city life, can, perhaps, be best studied in itsattempts to stamp out vice and control the liquor traffic.

The saloon and the vice establishments have come into exist-ence as a means of exploiting appetites and instincts fundamentalto human nature. This makes the efforts that have been madeto regulate and suppress these forms of exploitation and trafficinteresting and important as subjects of investigation.

Such an investigation should be based upon thorough study:(i) of the human nature upon which the commerce as been erected,(2) of the social conditions which tend to convert he normal appe-

tites into social vices, (3) of the practical effects f the efforts olimit, control, and stamp out the vice traffic nd to do away withthe use and sale of liquor.

Among the things that we should desire to know are:To what extent s the appetite for alcoholic stimulus pre-natal

dispositionTo what extent may such an appetite be transferred rom ne form f

stimulation o another; that s, e.g., from whiskey o cocaine,etc. ?To what extent s it possible to substitute ormal nd healthful or

pathological nd vicious stimulations?What are the social and moral effects f secret drinking?Where a taboo is established arly n life does it have the effect f

idealizing he delights f ndulgence? Does it do this n some cases andnot in others? If so, what are the contributing ircumstances? Domen uddenly ose the taste for iquor nd other timulants What re theconditions nder which this happens?

Many of these questions an be answered nly by a study f ndividualexperiences. Vices undoubtedly ave their natural history ike certain

forms f disease. They may therefore e regarded s independent ntities,whichfind heirhabitat n human nvironment, re stimulated y certainconditions, nhibited y others, ut nvariably xhibit hrough ll changesa character hat s typical.

7/28/2019 2763406

26/37

HUMAN BEHAVIOR IN THE CITY ENVIRONMENT 6oi

In the early ays the temperance ovement ad something hecharacter f a religious evival, nd the effects ere highly ic-turesque. In recent years the leaders have displayed moredeliberate trategy, ut the struggle gainst he iquortraffic tillhas all the characteristics f a big popular movement, move-mentwhich, aving t length onquered he rural districts, s nowadvancing pon the cities.

On the other hand, the vice crusade tarted with the cities,where n fact commercialized ice is indigenous. The mere dis-cussion f this subject n public has meant n enormous hangein the sex mores. The fact that this movement s everywherecoincident ith the entrance f women nto party politics s sig-nificant.

There re conditions eculiar o the ife f great ities, referred ounder he heading Mobility f the Population f Great Cities")whichmake the control f vice especially ifficult. or example, rusadesandreligious ovementsenerally onothave he ame uccessn he ityenvironment hat they do in the smaller nd less heterogeneousom-munities. What re the onditions hichmake his rue?

Perhaps hefactsmostworth tudying n connection ith hemove-ment or uppressionf viceare those, hich ndicate he changes hichhave aken lace nfifty ears n sex mores, articularly ith eferenceowhat s regarded s modest nd mmodest n the dress ndbehavior, ndwith eferenceo the freedom ith which exual matters re nowdis-cussed y young men nd youngwomen.

It seems,n fact, s if wewere n the presence f two poch-makingchanges, heonewhich eems estined inally oput ntoxicatingiquorsin the ategory f poisonous rugs, nd the ther o ift he taboowhich,

particularly mong nglo-Saxon eoples, aseffectually revented p tothepresent ime he rank iscussion f he acts f ex.

Party politics nd publicity.-There s everywhere t presentdisposition o increase he power of the executive ranch f thegovernment t the expenseof the legislative. The influence fstate egislatures nd of city ouncils as been diminished n someinstances y the introduction f the referendum nd the recall.In others they have been largely superseded by the commission

form f government. The ostensible easonfor hesechanges sthat they offer means for overthrowing he power of the pro-fessional politicians. The real ground eems to me the recognition

7/28/2019 2763406

27/37


of the fact that the form f government which had its origin n thetown meeting nd was well suited to the needs of a small communitybased on primary elations s not suitable to the government f thechanging nd heterogeneous opulations of cities of three or fourmillions.

Much, f course, epends pon he haracter nd sizeof the population.Where t s of Americantock, nd the number f voting itizens s not toogreat or horough nd calm discussion, obetter chool f politics an beimagined,or ny method f managingffairs ore ertain oprevent obberyandwaste, o stimulate igilance nd breed ontentment. hen, owever,

the ownmeeting asgrown o exceed even r eight undred ersons, nd,still more, when any considerableection re strangers, uch as Irish orFrench anadians, hohave atterly oured ntoNewEngland, he nstitu-tionworks essperfectly ecause hemultitudes too arge or ebate, actionsare likely o spring p, and the mmigrants, ntrained n self-government,become heprey fwire ullers r petty emagogues.'

For one thing, he problems of city government ave become,with the growth nd organization f city ife, o complicated hat tis no longer desirable o leave them o the control f men whoseonlyqualification orhandling them consists n the fact that they havesucceeded in gaining office through the ordinary machinery ofward politics.

Another circumstance which has made the selection of cityofficials y popular vote impractical, under the conditions of citylife, s the fact that, except in special cases, the voter knows ittleor nothing about the officials he is voting for; knows little ornothing bout the functions f the office o which that official s to

be elected; and, besides all the rest, s too busy elsewhere o informhimself bout conditions nd needs of the city as a whole.

At a recent election n Chicago, for example, voters were calledupon to select candidates from a ballot containing 250 names,most of them unknown o the voters. Under these circumstancesthe citizen who wishes to vote intelligently elieson some more orless interested rganization r some more or less interested dviserto tell him how to vote.

To meet this emergency, created primarily by conditionsimposed by city life, two types of organization have come into

I James Bryce, The American ommonwealth,, 566.

7/28/2019 2763406

28/37


existence or ontrolling hose rtificial rises hat wecallelections.One of these s the organization epresented y the political ossand the politicalmachine. The other s that represented y theindependent oters' eagues, axpayers' ssociations, nd organiza-tions ikethe bureaus f municipal esearch.

It is an indication f the rather rimitive onditionsn which urpolitical arties ere ormedhat hey ought ogovern he ountry nthe principle hat the remedy or ll sorts f administrativevilswasto "turn he rascals ut," as the popular hrase xpressed t, a changeofgovernment. he politicalmachine nd the political osshavecomeinto xistence n the nterest f party olitics. Thepartieswereneces-sarily rganized o capture lections. Thepoliticalmachines merelytechnical evice nvented or he purpose f achieving hisend. Theboss s the xpert ho uns he machine. He is as necessaryothewin-ning f n election s a professionaloachsnecessaryo uccesst football.It is characteristic of the two types of organization which

have grown p for he purpose f controlling hepopular ote thatthe first, he political machine, is based, on the whole, on local,personal, hat s to say, primary elationships. The second, hegood-governmentrganizations, ake their ppeal to the public,and the public, s we ordinarily nderstand hat expression,s agroup ased on secondary elationships. Members f a public renot as a rule personally cquainted.

The politicalmachine s in fact n attempt omaintain, nsidethe formal dministrative rganization f the city, hecontrol f aprimary roup. The organizations husbuilt up, of whichTam-manyHall is the lassic llustration, ppear o be thoroughly eudalin their haracter. The relations etween hebossand his wardcaptain eem to be precisely hat of personal oyalty n one sideand personalprotection n the other, which the feudal relationimplies. The virtueswhich uch an organization alls out are theold tribal nesof fidelity, oyalty, nd devotion o the nterests fthe chief nd the clan. The peoplewithin heorganization, heirfriends nd supporters, onsitute "we"-group,while he rest ofthe city s merely heouter world,which s not quite liveand notquite human in the sense in which the members f the "we "-groupare. We have here something pproaching he conditions fprimitive ociety.

7/28/2019 2763406

29/37

7/28/2019 2763406

30/37


personal, nd immediate nterests epresented y the differentneighborhoods nd localities, he good-government rganizations,the bureaus of municipal esearch, nd the like have sought orepresent he nterests f the city s a whole nd have appealed oa sentiment nd opinion either ocalnorpersonal. These gencieshave ought o secure fficiencynd good government y the duca-tion f the voter, hat s to say, by nvestigating nd publishing hefacts regarding he government.

In this way publicity as come to be a recognized orm fsocial control, nd advertising-"social dvertising"-has ecomea profession ith n elaborate echnique upported y a body ofspecialknowledge.

It is one of the characteristic henomenaf city ife nd of societyfounded n secondary elationshipshat advertising houldhave cometo occupy o mportant place n ts economy.

In recent ears very ndividual nd organization hich as had todealwith he ublic, hat s to say he ublic utside he maller ndmoreintimate ommunitiesf the village nd small own, as come o haveits press gent,who s often ess an advertising an than diplomaticman ccredited o the ewspapers,nd hroughhem o theworld t arge.Institutions ike the Russell age Foundation, nd to a less extent, heGeneral ducation oardhave ought o nfluenceublic pinion irectlythrough hemedium f publicity. The Carnegie eport ponMedicalEducation, hePittsburgh urvey, heRussell age Foundation eporton Comparative osts f Public-Schoolducation n the Several tates,are something orethan scientific eports. They are rather highform f ournalism, ealing ith xisting onditionsritically, nd eekingthrough he agency f publicity o bring bout radical eforms. hework f heBureau f Municipal esearchnNewYorkhashada similarpractical urpose. To thesemust e added he work ccomplishedythechild-welfarexhibits, y the ocial urveys ndertakenn different artsof the ountry, nd by similar ropagandan favor f public ealth.As a source of social control public opinion becomes important

in societies ounded n secondary elationshipsf which reat itiesare a type. In the city very ocialgroup ends ocreate ts ownmilieu nd, as these conditions ecome fixed, he mores tend toaccommodate hemselves o the conditions hus created. Insecondary groups and in the city, fashion tends to take the placeof custom, nd publicopinion ather han the mores ecomes hedominant orce n social control.

7/28/2019 2763406

31/37

6o6 THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY

In any attempt o understand henature f public pinion ndits relation o socialcontrol, t is important o investigate irst fall the agencies nd deviceswhichhave come nto practical se inthe ffort ocontrol, nlighten, nd exploit t.

The first nd the most mportant f these s the press, hat sthe dailynewspaper nd other orms f current iterature ncludingbooks lassed s current.'

After he newspaper, he bureaus of researchwhich re nowspringing p in all the arge ities re the most nteresting nd themost promising evicesfor usingpublicity s a meansof control.

The fruits f these investigations o not reach the publicdirectly, ut are disseminated hrough he medium f the press,the pulpit, nd other ources f popular enlightenment.

In addition o these here re the educational ampaignsn theinterest f better ealth onditions, hechild-welfarexhibits, ndthenumerous socialadvertising" eviceswhich re now mployed,sometimes pon the nitiative f private ocieties, ometimes ponthat of popularmagazines r newspapers, n order o educate hepublic and enlist the massesof the people n the movement orthe mprovement f conditions f community ife.

The newspaper s the great medium f communication ithinthe city, nd it is on the basisof the nformation hich t suppliesthat public opinion ests. The first unction hich newspapersupplies s that which was formerly erformed y the villagegossip.

In spite, however, f the industry with which newspaperspursue facts of personal ntelligence nd human nterest, heycannot ompete ith he village ossips s a means f ocial ontrol.For one thing, he newspapermaintains ome reservations otrecognized y gossip, n the matters f personal ntelligence. orexample, ntil hey unfor ffice r commit ome other vert ctthat brings them before he public conspicuously, he privatelife of individual men or women s a subject that is for thenewspaper aboo. It is not so with gossip,partly because n asmall community o individual s so obscure that his privateaffairs scapeobservation nd discussion;partly ecausethe field

zCf. Bryce, TheAmerican ommonwealth,. 267.

7/28/2019 2763406

32/37


is smaller. In small communities here s a perfectly mazingamount f personal nformation float mong he ndividuals hocompose hem.

The absence f this n the city s what, n large art, makes hecity what t is.

Someof the questions hat arise n regard o the nature nd function fthe newspapernd of publicity enerallyre:

What s news?What are the methods and motives of the newspaper man? Are

they hose f n artist a historian ormerely hose f brigandTo what xtent oes the newspaperontrol nd to what xtent s itcontrolled y public sentimentWhat is a "fake" and why?What is yellow ournalism nd why s it yellow?What would be the effect f making the newspaper a municipal

monopoly?What s the difference etween dvertising nd news?

IV. TEMPERAMENT AND THE URBAN ENVIRONMENT

Great cities have always been the melting-pots f races andof cultures. Out of the vivid nd subtle nteractions f which heyhave been the centers, herehave come the newer reeds nd thenewer ocial types. The great cities of the United States, forexample,have drawn from he isolation f their native villagesgreat masses of the rural populations f Europe and America.Under he shockof the new contacts he atent nergies f theseprimitive eoples have been released, nd the subtler rocesses finteraction ave brought nto existence, ot merely ocational,but temperamental ypes.

Mobilization f the ndividualman.-Transportation nd com-munication aveeffected, mongmany ther ilent ut far-reachingchanges,what I have called the "mobilization f the individualman." They have multiplied he opportunities f the ndividualman for contact and for associationwith his fellows, ut theyhave made these contacts nd associationsmore transitory ndless stable. A very arge part of the populations f great cities,including hosewho make their homes n tenements nd apart-ment houses, ive much s peopledo in somegreat hotel,meeting

7/28/2019 2763406

33/37

6o8 THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY

but not knowing ne another. The effect f this s to substitutefortuitous nd casual relationship or the more intimate ndpermanent ssociations f the smaller ommunity.

Under hese ircumstances he ndividual's tatus s determinedto a considerable egreeby conventional igns-by fashion nd"front"-and the art of life s largely educed o skating n thinsurfaces nd a scrupulous tudy f style nd manners.

Not only ransportation nd communication,ut the egregationof the urban population ends to facilitate he mobility f theindividual man. The processes of segregation stablish moraldistances hichmakethe ity mosaic f ittle worldswhich ouchbut do not nterpenetrate. his makes t possible or ndividualsto pass quickly nd easilyfrom ne moral milieu o another ndencourages he fascinating ut dangerous xperiment f living tthe same time n several different ontiguous, erhaps, ut widelyseparatedworlds. All this tends to give to city ife superficialand adventitious haracter; t tends o complicate ocialrelation-ships and to produce new and divergent ndividual ypes. Itintroduces, t the ame time, n element f chance nd adventure,which dds to the stimulus f city ife nd gives t for young ndfresh erves peculiar ttractiveness. The lure of great ities sperhaps consequence f stimulations hich ct directly pon thereflexes. As a type of human behavior t may be explained, ikethe attraction f the flame or he moth, s a sort f tropism.

The attraction f the metropolis s due n part, however, othefact that n the ongrun every ndividual inds omewhere mongthe varied manifestations f city ife the sort of environment nwhich he expands nd feels t ease; finds, n short, he moralclimate n whichhis peculiarnature btains hestimulations hatbring his innate qualities to full and free expression. t is, Isuspect,motives f this kind which avetheir asis,not n nterestnor even in sentiment, ut in somethingmore fundamental ndprimitive hichdraw many, f not most, f the young men andyoungwomen rom he security f their omes n the country ntothe big,booming onfusion nd excitement f city ife. In a smallcommunity t is the normal man, the man without ccentricity rgenius,whoseemsmost ikely o succeed. The smallcommunity

7/28/2019 2763406

34/37

HUMAN BEHAVIOR IN THE CITYENVIRONMENT 609

often olerates ccentricity. he city, n the contrary, ewardst.Neither he criminal, he defective, or the geniushas the sameopportunity o develop his innate disposition n a small town,that he invariably inds n a great ity.

Fifty years ago every villagehad one or two eccentric har-acters who were treated rdinarily ith a benevolent oleration,but who were regarded meanwhile s impracticable nd queer.These exceptional ndividuals ived an isolated xistence, ut offby their ery eccentricities, hether f genius r of defect, romgenuinely ntimate ntercourse ith their fellows. If they hadthe making f criminals, herestraints nd inhibitions f the mallcommunity endered hem armless. If they adthe tuff fgeniusin them, hey emained terile or ack of ppreciation r opportun-ity. Mark Twain's tory f Pudd'n Head Wilson sa description fone such obscure nd unappreciated enius. It is not so true s itwas that-

Full many flower s born to blush unseenAnd waste ts fragrance n the desert ir.

Gray wrote the "Elegy in a Country Churchyard" efore heexistence f the modern ity.

In the city many f thesedivergent ypesnowfind milieu nwhichfor good or for ll their dispositions nd talents arturateand bear fruit.

In the investigation f those exceptional nd temperamental ypeswhich the city has produced, we should seek to distinguish, s far aspossible, between those abstract mental qualities upon which technicalexcellence s based and those more fundamental ative characteristicswhich find xpression n temperament. We may therefore sk:

To what extent re the moral qualitiesof ndividuals ased on nativecharacter? To what extent are they conventionalized abits imposeduponby them r taken overby them rom he group

What are the native qualities and characteristics pon which themoral or immoral haracter ccepted and conventionalized y the groupare based?

What connection r what divorceappears

to exist between mentaland moral qualities n the groups nd in the ndividuals omposing hem?

Are criminals s a rule of a lower order of intelligence han non-criminals? If so, what types of ntelligence re associated with different

7/28/2019 2763406

35/37

6io THE AMERICAN JOURNALOF SOCIOLOGY

types f crime? For example, o professional urglars nd professionalconfidence en epresent ifferent ental ypes?

What re the effects ponthesedifferent ypes f solation nd ofmobility, f timulus ndofrepression?To what extent an playgrounds nd other forms f recreation

supply he timulation hich s otherwise ought or n vicious leasuresTo what xtent an vocational uidance ssist ndividuals n finding

vocationsn which heywillbe able to obtain free xpressionf theirtemperamentalualities?

The moral region.-It is inevitable that individuals who seekthe same forms of excitement, whether that excitement be furn-ished by a horse race or by grand opera, should find themselvesfrom time to time in the same places. The result of this s that,in the organization which city life spontaneously ssumes, a dis-position of the population manifests tself to segregate tself, notmerely n accordance with its interests, but in accordance withits tastes or its temperaments. The resulting distribution f thepopulation is likely to be quite different rom that brought boutby occupational nterests r economic conditions.

Every neighborhood, nder the influences which tend to dis-tribute nd segregate ity populations, may assume the characterof a "moral region." Such, for example, are the vice districts,which are found n most cities. A moral region s not necessarilya place of abode. It may be a mere rendezvous, a place ofresort.

In order ounderstand heforces hichn every arge ity end o developthesedetachedmilieus, n which agrant nd uppressedmpulses, assions,and deals mancipate hemselvesrom hedominant oral rder, t sneces-sary orefer o the fact r theory f atent mpulsesfmen.

The fact eems o be that men re brought nto heworldwith ll thepassions,nstincts, nd appetites, ncontrollednd undisciplined. iviliza-tion, n the nterests f the common elfare, emands he uppressionome-times, nd the control lways, f these wild,natural ispositions. n theprocess f imposing ts discipline pon the ndividual, n making ver theindividualn accordance ith heaccepted ommunity odel, much s sup-pressed ltogether, nd muchmore inds vicarious xpressionn forms hat

are socially aluable, r at least nnocuous. t is at this point hat port,play, and art function. hey permit he ndividual o purgehimself ymeans f ymbolicxpressionf these wild nd suppressedmpulses. This sthe atharsis f which ristotle rote nhisPoetic nd which as been given

7/28/2019 2763406

36/37

7/28/2019 2763406

37/37


of city ife, s the fact that social contagion ends o stimulate n

divergent ypes the common emperamental ifferences, nd tosuppress haracters hich nite hem with henormal ypes boutthem. Association with others of their own ilk provides lsonot merely stimulus, ut a moral upport or he traits hey avein commonwhich hey wouldnot find n a less select ociety. Inthe great city the poor, the vicious, nd the delinquent, rushedtogether n an unhealthful nd contagiousntimacy, reed n and n,soul and body, o that t has often ccurred o me that those onggenealogies f the Jukes and the Tribes of Ishmael would notshowsuch a persistent nd distressing niformity f vice, crime,and poverty nless heywerepeculiarly it or he environment nwhich hey re condemned oexist.

WVemust then ccept these "moral regions" nd the more orless eccentric nd exceptional eoplewho nhabit hem, n a sense,at least, s part f the natural fnot the normal ife f city.

It is not necessary o understand y the expression moral region"place r society hat seither ecessarilyriminal r bnormal. t is ntendedrather o apply o regions nwhich divergent oral ode prevails, ecausetis a region n which he peoplewho nhabit t are dominated, s people reordinarily otdominated, ya taste r by passion rby omenterest hichhas ts roots irectly n the original ature f the ndividual. t may be anart, ikemusic, r a sport, ikehorse acing. Such region ould iffer romother ocial roups y the act hat ts nterests remore mmediatendmorefundamental. or this reason ts differences re likely o be due to moralrather han ntellectual solation.

Because of theopportunity

t offers, articularly o the excep-tional and abnormal types of man, a great city tends to spread outand lay bare to the public view in a massive manner all the char-acters and traits which are ordinarily bscured nd suppressedin smaller ommunities. he city, n short, hows hegoodandevil in human nature n excess. It is this fact, perhaps, more thanany other which ustifies he view that would make of the city alaboratory r clinic n whichhuman nature nd social processesmay be most onveniently nd profitably tudied.

2763406

Documents