[lbo-talk] Suburban alienation?

[Per I. Mathisen]

On Wed, 22 Nov 2006, James Heartfield wrote:
> "The study, released by the University of California at Irvine, found that 
> for every 10 per cent decrease in population density, the chances of people 
> talking to their neighbours weekly increases by 10 per cent, and the 
> likelihood they belong to hobby-based clubs jumps by 15 per cent.
> "We found that interaction goes down as population density goes up.

Well, here is another thought: Higher density usually correlates with more 
poverty, since the rich often actively move out of densely populated 
areas, and poverty often leads to less time and priority for hobbies and 
socializing with neighbours.

Life can be, as the article says, "a little more relaxed" for those who 
are more affluent. The examples in the article also bear this out. So it 
is not necessarily the density that is the factor causing alienation.

   - Per