Small Urban Places Research Articles

Socioeconomic Correlates of Anti-Science Attitudes in the US

Successful responses to societal challenges require sustained behavioral change. However, as responses to the COVID-19 pandemic in the US showed, political partisanship and mistrust of science can reduce public willingness to adopt recommended behaviors such as wearing a mask or receiving a vaccination. To better understand this phenomenon, we explored attitudes toward science using social media posts (tweets) that were linked to counties in the US through their locations. The data allowed us to study how attitudes towards science relate to the socioeconomic characteristics of communities in places from which people tweet. Our analysis revealed three types of communities with distinct behaviors: those in large metro centers, smaller urban places, and rural areas. While partisanship and race are strongly associated with the share of anti-science users across all communities, income was negatively and positively associated with anti-science attitudes in suburban and rural areas, respectively. We observed that emotions in tweets, specifically negative high arousal emotions, are expressed among suburban and rural communities by many anti-science users, but not in communities in large urban places. These trends were not apparent when pooled across all counties. In addition, we found that anti-science attitudes expressed five years earlier were significantly associated with lower COVID-19 vaccination rates. Our analysis demonstrates the feasibility of using spatially resolved social media data to monitor public attitudes on issues of social importance.

Understanding Recent Growth Dynamics in Small Urban Places: The Case of New England

This article utilizes recently published US Census data covering the pre–and post–Great Recession period (1990–2015) to identify key determinants of growth among small urban places in the New England Region. We find little evidence of random growth and robust evidence of convergence in growth, indicating that smaller urban areas tend to experience faster rates of growth than larger ones, over both the short and long term. Factors such as distance to large city areas and amenities are found to be particularly relevant to population growth rates. Having a diverse industrial base, high levels of human capital and proximity to large urban areas are factors that positively affect income growth. These results highlight the importance of policies geared to improve cities’ amenities, increase their industrial diversity, and attracting and retaining human capital in urban areas.

Open workshops as sites of innovative socio-economic practices: approaching urban post-growth by assemblage theory

ABSTRACTCurrent debates on knowledge-based and creative locational development have come to deal with small urban places of novelty that formerly remained unnoticed. A plethora of new forms of producing and working recently emerged in unplanned and uncoordinated ways, bearing odd names such as FabLabs, Open Worklabs, RealLabs, Open Design Cities, Techshops, Repair Cafés, and more (Smith, A., M. Fressoli, D. Abrol, E. Arond, and A. Ely. 2017. Grassroots Innovation Movements. London: Routledge). Political initiatives have been taken by surprise; at the same time, standard epistemic tools of the social sciences and economics have been rendered unfit. More concise analytical reconstructions are needed to adequately capture the variety and complexity of these “labs”, their heterogeneous causation, their contingent proceedings, their surplus of latency, their peculiar power relations and their local embeddings. Urban social contexts have a strong triggering function as they help to re-configure older, and create new, combinations of heterogeneous social and economic agency. Meanwhile strong elements of grassroots innovation (Smith et al. 2017) have informed the formation of various models of alternative work and production. Taking the phenotype of open workshops as a revealing example, we take assemblage theory to describe the constitutive features of these new types of self-organised work, and the associated places of innovation. A fresh gaze on the complexity and open-endedness of socio-material formations may help to better understand the nature of emerging post-growth economies.

Wait times for surgical and adjuvant radiation treatment of breast cancer in Canada and the United States: Greater socioeconomic inequity in America

The demand for cancer care has increased among aging North American populations as cancer treatment innovations have proliferated. Gaps between supply and demand may be growing. This study examined whether socioeconomic status has a differential effect on waits for surgical and adjuvant radiation treatment (RT) of breast cancer in Canada and the US. Ontario and California cancer registries provided 929 and 984 breast cancer cases diagnosed between 1998 and 2000 in diverse urban and rural places. Residence-based socioeconomic data were taken from censuses. Cancer care variables were reliably abstracted from health records: stage, receipt of surgery and RT, and waits from diagnosis to initial and initial to adjuvant treatment. Median waits were compared within- and between-country with the non-parametric Mann-Whitney U-test. Categorically long, age-adjusted wait comparisons used the Mantel-Haenszel chi-square test. There were significant associations between lower socioeconomic status and longer surgical waits, lower access to adjuvant RT and to longer RT waits across diverse places in California. None were observed in Ontario. The two cohorts did not practically differ on access to surgery or on surgical waits. Compared with their counterparts in California, low-income Ontarians, particularly those in small urban places, gained greater access to RT, while high-income Americans had shorter waits for RT. This historical study contextualized Canada's "waiting-list problems" with evidence on breast cancer care, where lower income Americans seemed to have waited as long as similar Canadians. Many more low-income Americans seemed to experience the longest wait of all for adjuvant care. They simply did not receive it. In contrast to stark American socioeconomic inequity, this study evidenced remarkable equity in Canadian breast cancer care.

Spatial Variations in Mexican Maquiladora Closure

Mexico is one of the world's most important locations for facilities that manufacture for export (maquiladoras). The rate of maquiladora closure, however, is quite high. This study is an analysis of maquila closure by urban place between 1990 and 2000. Five hypothesized variables of plant closure are analyzed: distance from the U.S. border, wages-by-wage zone, size of urban location, predominant nationality of plant equity, and predominant product(s) manufactured by urban place. Higher rates of plant closure manifested by closure quotients are associated with important maquila locations in high-wage areas, and places dominated by lowvalue-added assembly ("Fordist") manufacturing. Fordist maquilas have experienced the highest number of plant closures but many have found short-term respite in small interior urban places. The results provide evidence of the evolution of maquilas by product and by location. The future of the maquiladora industry, considering Mexico's waning comparative advantage, is structural reform in education and training for a labor force that must compete on the basis of a different manufacturing paradigm.

Interurban Development and Economic Disparities in a Russian Province

The paper explores the relationship among factors believed to influence the economic development potential of Russian cities in the post-Soviet period, based on a detailed case study of small and medium-sized urban places in Leningrad Oblast. Relying on rarely utilized statistical data (including local town censuses) collected during on-site research and interviews, the author constructs an economic development index that provides a reference for inter-urban comparisons and analysis. The significance of accessibility for post-Soviet urban development is statistically demonstrated and the role of inherited spatial economic structures (economic-geographical endowment) is discussed along with other factors influencing urban performance. Journal of Economic Literature, Classification Numbers: O11, O18, R11. 3 figures, 4 tables, 30 references.

Growth and change in the location of commercial activities in Canada: with special attention to smaller urban places

Growth and change in the location of commercial activities in Canada: with special attention to smaller urban places

Measuring Unmet Needs of Intercity Bus Transportation

Federal funding for intercity bus programs is available to states under Section 5311 (f) of the Federal Transit Act. The act requires that 15% of all federal funding for public transportation in nonurbanized areas be expended for intercity bus transportation, unless the state governor certifies that the intercity bus service needs are adequately met. A demand-supply-deficiency analysis was undertaken to assess whether intercity bus needs are being met in Illinois. The analysis indicates that some larger city-to-city routes could use additional service. In addition, many smaller urban places have no access to rail or bus service, especially in southern Illinois, and many of these have no Section 5311(f) recipients. Without state support for intercity bus programs, it is unlikely that people in these places will have access to such service in the foreseeable future.

The political economy of theme development in small urban places: The case of Roswell, New Mexico

Not unlike metropolitan settings, small towns and cities are increasingly employing themes to encourage the realization of capital through the attraction of visitors and the redevelop ment of their ailing business districts. This research investigates the process through which theme development can be incorporated into the downtown revitalization strategies of small cities in the United States. In a qualitative case study of Roswell, New Mexico, this paper applies the political economy perspective of urban growth coalitions to understand how the UFO/alien theme came to materialize within Roswell's commercial landscape and promo tional materials. While the growth coalition concept was found to be useful here for under standing redevelopment processes in small urban places, the implications of theme development and tourism promotion in smaller business districts may contrast sharply with their metropolitan counterparts. In Roswell, a strong community sense of place for down town led to a local debate surrounding the appropriateness of the UFO theme, primarily in the context of local heritage, place identities and authenticity.

Disarming the War of the Growth Machines: A Panel Study

Intercommunity variation in growth machine activities, including the manipulation of the business climate and vertical integration with state economic development programs, net migration, and land use change are examined using a sample of 96 small urban places. A panel design and key informant methodology, 1970–90, permit cross-sectional and longitudinal observation. Using regression analysis with appropriate statistical controls, the research indicates that growth machines, particularly those in affluent communities, do intensify land uses. The business climate also negatively affects changes in business and industrial land uses as well as net migration. Some local efforts may not affect growth until the subsequent decade. The research suggests that growth machine activities are intensifying and may be exacerbating social inequality between places, especially affluent residential communities and declining working-class communities in the old industrial belt.

The Small and Medium Sized Exporters' Problems: An Empirical Analysis of Canadian Manufacturers

BAGCHI-SEN S. (1999) The small and medium sized exporters' problems: an empirical analysis of Canadian manufacturers, Reg. Studies 33 , 231-245. This paper examines the competitive characteristics of small and medium sized manufacturers from small towns and cities in southern Ontario. The paper is situated within the context of two bodies of theoretical literature. The first is the literature on the dilemmas faced by small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in small open economies, especially in an era of trade liberalization. The second body of literature involves the role and nature of SMEs in employment growth, trade and innovation. A particular focus of this study is to understand the relationship between export orientation and innovation performance. The study is based on a survey of SMEs in the Niagara region, a mature industrial region in the periphery of Toronto. Results confirm that successful exporters from these small urban places are also actively involved in both product and process innovation. As a result, competitive advantage is based on both price and non-price based factors. Competitive problems include issues related to scale economies and the rising import competition from US producers in the post FTA and NAFTA period. Successful entrepreneurs from this region are not only pushing forward with innovation, but strive to become leaders within their market segment. Future studies will focus upon: cross-border comparisons of SMEs with regards to the relationship between innovation and export performance; competitive strategies and technical problems; and innovation and export market development efforts in other countries of the Asia-Pacific region. BAGCHI-SEN S. (1999) Les problèmes auxquels font face les PMI à vocation exportatrice: une analyse empirique des industriels au Canada, Reg. Studies 33 , 231-245. Cet article cherche à examiner les traits concurrentiels des petites et moyennes entreprises industrielles situées aux villes de l'est de l'Ontario. L'article embrasse deux corpus de documentation théorique. Primo, la documentation qui traite des problèmes auxquels font face les PMI dans les petites économies ouvertes, surtout à l'heure de la libéralisation des échanges. Secundo, la documentation qui traite du rôle et des caractéristiques des PMI quant à la création de l'emploi, le commerce et l'innovation. Cette étude porte notamment sur le rapport entre la vocation exportatrice et la capacité d'innover. L'étude provient d'une enquête des PMI situées dans la région de Niagara, une région industrielle développée à la périphérie de Toronto. Les résultats confirment que les exportateurs réussis qui proviennent de ces petites zones urbaines s'engagent sérieusement aussi dans l'innovation des produits et des procédés. Par la suite, l'avantage compétitif s'explique et par des facteurs de prix et par d'autres facteurs. Les problèmes de compétitivité embrassent des questions qui se rapportent aux économies d'échelle et à la concurrence de plus en plus vive des industriels aux EU au lendemain de la FTA et de la NAFTA. Les entrepreneurs réussis de cette région n'ont pas seulement le mérite de faire valoir l'innovation, mais aussi s'efforcent de devenir leader au sein de leur secteur. Des études futures porteront sur des comparaisons transfrontalières des PMI quant au rapport entre l'innovation et l'exportation; les stratégies compétitives et les problèmes techniques; l'innovation et la promotion à l'exportation dans d'autres pays de la zone asiatique, pacifique. BAGCHI-SEN S. (1999) Probleme kleiner und mittelgroßer Exportfirmen: eine empirische Analyse kanadischer Hersteller, Reg. Studies 33 , 231‐245. Dieser Aufsatz untersucht die Wettbewerbseigenschaften kleiner und mittelgroßer Hersteller in Klein- und Großstädten von Südontario. Der Aufsatz ist im Zusammenhang zweier Gebiete der theoretischen Literatur angesiedelt: das einebeschäftigt sich mit den Dilemmas, denen kleine und mittelgroße Unternehmen (small and medium sized enterprises=SME) sich in kleinen, offenen Wirtschaftssystem ausgesetzt sehen, besonders in einem Zeitalter der Handelsliberalisierung, während es sich bei dem anderen um Rolle und Natur kleiner und mittlerer Firmen bei Beschäftigungsanstieg, Handel und Innovation dreht. Diese Studie konzentriert sich vorallem auf das Verhältnis zwischen der Ausrichtung auf Export und Durchführung von Innovationen. Sie beruht auf der Untersuchung kleiner und mittlerer Firmen im Niagaragebiet, einem voll entwickelten Industriegebiet am Rande Torontos. Die Ergebnisse bestätigen, daß erfolgreiche Exportfirmen in diesen Kleinstädten auch aktiv in Produkt- und Verarbeitungsinnovation engagiert sind. Daraus ergibt sich, daß Wettbewerbsvorteile sowohl auf Preisfaktoren beruhen wie auch auf anderen, außerhalb des Preises liegenden. Wettbewerbsprobleme entstehen durch Fragen, die mit der Wirtschaftlichkeit des Betriebsumfangs zu tun haben, mit dem sich verschärfenden Importwettbewerb von Herstellern in den USA im Gefolge des FTA and NAFTA Zeitalters. Erfolgreiche Unternehmer dieses drängen nicht nur auf Innovation, sondern bemühen sich darüberhinaus, auf ihrem Marktsektor führend zu werden. Zukünftige Untersuchungen werden sich auf grenzüberschreitende Vergleiche kleiner und mittelgroßer Firmen im Hinblick auf das Verhältnis von Innovation und Expertleistung; auf Wettbewerbsstrategien und technische Probleme; auf Innovation und Anstrengungen bei der Entwicklung von Exportmärkten in anderen Ländern der asiatischen-pazifischen Region konzentrieren.

Modelling migration flows of immigrant groups in Canada.

"In this paper, the authors briefly review the findings of an earlier study on the patterns of both regional and metropolitan redistribution of immigrant groups in Canada. Against this backdrop, a hierarchical model of migration for immigrant groups for the period 1981-86 is developed and estimated. The internal redistribution of immigrants through postarrival migration has continued to be focused on metropolitan areas in general and on Toronto, Vancouver, and Montreal in particular. The distribution of previous immigrants plays a significant role over and above that of economic circumstances both in retaining immigrants in a particular city and in attracting members of immigrant groups from other cities."

Chinese urbanization and development before and after economic reform: A comparative reappraisal

This paper analyzes the recent process and consequences of China's urbanization by weighing the short-term policies and long-term strategies concerning national development and urban growth against the objective material conditions and competing group interests in Chinese society. Comparative insights are drawn from the experiences of other late-developing countries where the effects of political decisions concerning urban growth have been fundamentally modified by social and economic forces. Thus China's urbanization is examined here in terms of the four major aspects of Third World urbanization: overurbanization; urban bias and the parasitic versus generative nature of cities; rural development and the role of small urban places; and interregional balance in urbanization and development. The rapid and complex process of urbanization certainly helps boost the dynamic of the post-Mao Chinese economy, but not without the problematic symptoms of congestion and inequality.

China's open door policy and urbanization in the Pearl River Delta region

The demographic impact of the economic development that has occurred in the Pearl River Delta Region of China a region strongly influenced by Hong Kong and Macau is analyzed. The authors note that more liberal policies with regard to migration have evolved in association with this economic development resulting in a marked increase in rural-urban migration. However in contrast to the usual pattern found in most third world countries accelerated urbanization in the Pearl River Delta Region in recent years has not been associated with increasing primacy. Nor has overurbanization--in the sense that massive rural to urban migration is not accompanied by rapid industrialization--been apparent. Instead there is a discernable trend toward a rank-size urban hierarchy. Also industrial development in the small and intermediate urban places has been gathering pace. In many respects the Chinese experience is an anomaly and does not readily fit the conventional models of regional development. (SUMMARY IN FRE) (EXCERPT)

Urbanization and urban development in India: some policy issues

Urban trends in India over the period 1961-1981 are analyzed and prospects for further urban growth until the end of this century are assessed. "Trends in distribution of the urban population by cities and smaller urban places inter-state variations in urbanization and changes in the contribution of the urban population to the national GDP are reviewed and the implications of the trends and projections for national policies on urban and regional development are referred to briefly." Particular attention is given to the social and economic problems associated with urbanization and to their resolution. (SUMMARY IN FRE AND GER AND SPA) (EXCERPT)

Development-related contextual effects and individual attributes in third world migration processes: A Venezuelan example

Out-migration in Venezuela was examined as a function of personal attributes and place or contextual characteristics related to thus combining the individual and mass perspectives. This is part of a broader effort to elaborate upon development paradigm of based on the observation that economic growth involves structural changes in society which in turn affect the role of specific migration factors. Development indices were derived by principal components analysis of 21 variables pertaining to distritos a small political unit. STRUCTURE 1 component represents a traditional-contemporary continuum in economic and social structure; PRESSURE a 2nd component represents the degree to which distrito population is dependent rather than economically active and its level of population pressure. Personal characteristics in addition to migrant status include the age educational level and gender of 65994 individuals in 1971. These variables were used in logistic regressions for the entire sample for persons from distritos with large and intermediate-sized urban places and for those from distritos with small urban places and rural areas. Educational attainment was the most important variable for distritos with no urban center in excess of 20000 and second in importance for distritos with urban centers of greater than 20000. Its role was consistent across subsamples as was that of age. Gender was among the most important determinants of out-migration in rural and less urban distritos but a minor factor elsewhere. This is because females gravitate to and tend not to leave major urban centers where employment opportunities are more numerous and gender-biased attitudes less prevalent. In general traditional-contemporary aspects of socioeconomic structure and educational attainment emerged as most important. Age was consistent in its role but gender varied according to whether a distrito is more rural or urban. Dependency-population pressure was significant in all settings but less important overall.

Forms of Mobility and Their Policy Implications: Thailand and China Compared

As part of their development efforts, many developing nations are concerned about their patterns of population distribution and migration; a number have instituted policies to change the situation. A growing body of research suggests that temporary population movement—circulation—may serve as an alternative means for populations to adjust to the changing economic situations. This paper assesses the impact of development efforts on the various forms of population mobility in Thailand and China. In Thailand, rural development efforts, more investment in small urban places, and improved transport and communication networks have all contributed to a decrease in rural—rural migration and an increase of movement between urban places. Evidence also suggests that circulation between rural and urban places has increased. In China, where permanent migration is tightly controlled, development policies have led to a vast increase in temporary movement. Especially important has been institution of the agricultural responsibility system and investment in small city and town development, but urban reforms have also fostered increased labor mobility. Although China's political system makes both development policies and control of population movement much easier to carry out than in most other countries, China's experiences can hold special interest for developing nations like Thailand that are also concerned about the impact of modernization on population redistribution and the quality of life in both urban and rural places.

Forms of Mobility and Their Policy Implications: Thailand and China Compared

As part of their development efforts, many developing nations are concerned about their patterns of population distribution and migration; a number have instituted policies to change the situation. A growing body of research suggests that temporary population movement-circulation-may serve as an alternative means for populations to adjust to the changing economic situations. This paper assesses the impact of development efforts on the various forms of population mobility in Thailand and China. In Thailand, rural development efforts, more investment in small urban places, and improved transport and communication networks have all contributed to a decrease in rural-rural migration and an increase of movement between urban places. Evidence also suggests that circulation between rural and urban places has increased. In China, where permanent migration is tightly controlled, development policies have led to a vast increase in temporary movement. Especially important has been institution of the agricultural responsibility system and investment in small city and town development, but urban reforms have also fostered increased labor mobility. Although China's political system makes both development policies and control of population movement much easier to carry out than in most other countries, China's experiences can hold special interest for developing nations like Thailand that are also concerned about the impact of modernization on population redistribution and the quality of life in both urban and rural places.

Using Key Informant Data in Comparative Community Research

Among the obstacles confronting community researchers are difficulties in conducting comparative research involving more than a small number of communities. This is especially true when research is directed toward investigations of social processes and actions that cannot reasonably be tapped using available secondary data sources. One potential approach to resolving this dilemma involves the collection of information on social processes and actions in communities from knowledgeable “key informants.” However, despite the fact that use of informants has become relatively common in community research, little attention has been directed to the specific strengths and weaknesses of such data collection procedures. Issues of validity and reliability of informant-based data have not been widely discussed, and there have been few attempts to assess or compare various informant selection criteria. In this article we focus on an empirical overview of the key informant method and the data it can generate. The analysis is based on data collected in conjunction with a study of growth mobilization processes in small urban places. Our findings provide mixed evidence regarding the contention that use of multiple informants from each study unit can provide reliable and valid data on community processes.

Inter-relations between migration and fertility: Their significance for urbanisation in Malaysia

The rapid growth of the urban population concurrent with the continuing growth of the rural populations the increasing number of big cities and the significant contribution of both migration and natural increase to urban growth emphasize the importance of assessing more fully interrelations between migration and natural increase in urban and rural segments of the less developed countries. This paper reports on research assessing these interrelations in Malaysia using life histories of ever-married women collected in the Malaysian Family Life Survey of 1976-77. To provide a contextual setting the general demographic and urban situation in Southeast Asia and Malaysia is described. The study reveals that residence in big cities has a major impact on the average number of children everborn. With age differentials controlled women living in the market centers of Malaysia averaged 3.7 children compared to an average of 4.6 children born to women in small urban places and 4.7 children to rural women. Comparisons of migrant/non-migrant fertility in urban and rual places suggest the operation of both selection and adaptation. Length of residence affects fertility levels and also suggests operation of these 2 factors. Because migration is age selective and therefore brings into urban areas considerable numbers of women in their peak reproduction ages migration contributes to the absolute number of births in cities and adds to the importance of natural increase in urban growth. Women were found likely to move if they had fewer children. Movement may lead to acquisition of more land. Selectivity and especially disruption were suggested from examining the childbearing adn migration experience of a single cohort of women. The disruption model was strongly supported by another analysis. Rapid adaptation by the migrants to the fertility behavior of women at destination is suggested. Given the complexity of the migration-fertility relation no clear overall policy implications emerge. Movement encouragecd solely for fertility reduction seems unlikely to realize its goal.