"[R]esidents of neighborhoods where more than 21 percent of the residents ages 18-64 have never been married have higher levels of mortality compared to those neighborhoods where only 9 percent or fewer of the residents have never been married." In other words, that when it comes to marital status (and other characteristics scrutinized in this study), Americans of all racial and ethnic groups "risk death not only through their own socioeconomic characteristics, but also through the characteristics of their neighborhoods."

(Source: Stephanie A. Bond Huie, Robert A. Hummer, and Richard G. Rogers, "Individual and Contextual Risks of Death among Race and Ethnic Groups in the United States," Journal of Health and Social Behavior 43[2002]: 359-381.)

"Trey Whitfield, in East New York, is a hybrid institution. It has the autonomy of a private school, the demographics of an urban public school and the religious and disciplinary trappings of a parochial school. It spends a mere $4,000 per pupil, less than half of classroom spending in New York City public schools...

Trey Whitfield students perform two or three years above grade level on national achievement tests. On the state reading and math exams, they rack up 3's and 4's on a 1-to-4 scoring system, while 2's are the norm in public schools...

The governing principle at the school is that structure, calm and safety are prerequisites for learning. 'If we didn't have order, we couldn't teach these kids at all,' Mr. Whitfield said, acknowledging that some people find his techniques robotic.

... Students come mostly from working-class families in eastern Brooklyn, the children of nurses' aides and bus drivers, teachers and police officers. Everyone is nonwhite, reflecting the demographics of this swath of Brooklyn. Some live in two-parent households, and others with single mothers or fathers, with grandmothers or in foster homes."

(Source: Jane Gross, "A Private School That Thrives on Rules," The New York Times, September 24, 2003; http://www.nytimes.com/2003/09/24/education/24PRIV.html?th.)   

The neighborhoods that see the most of homicide detectives are also those in which children see the least of their fathers. The linkage between an urban area's homicide rate and its typical family structure stands out as one of the more provocative findings of a study recently published by sociologist Charis E. Kubrin of George Washington University.

By superimposing homicide data for the city of St. Louis on 1990 tract-level census data, Kubrin sought to characterize the "social space" in which murders occur. After classifying the homicides by type (General Altercation, Felony, Domestic: Male/Female, Domestic: Female/Male), Kubrin established that some neighborhood characteristics predicted only certain types of killings. For instance, the percentage of a neighborhood's population made up of young males predicted General Altercation, Felony, and Domestic: Female/Male homicides, but did not predict Domestic: Male/Female killings. In contrast, a neighborhood's population size predicted Felony and Domestic: Female/Male killings, but not the other three types.

But through further scrutiny of the data, Kubrin discovered that some neighborhood characteristics predicted all types of murders. "The economic disadvantage indicators," writes Kubrin, "as well as percent Black and percent children not living with both parents are significantly associated with all homicide counts."

Kubrin interprets the statistical findings as evidence of "the development and persistence of a subculture conducive to violence" in some inner-city neighborhoods. "The disintegration of particular institutions (i.e., churches, families, and schools)," Kubrin explains, "denies Blacks the opportunity to learn conventional norms and values. The result of such processes is that Blacks are more likely to use violence in their day-to-day encounters, and violence is seen as an acceptable means for solving problems."