The Chicago School of Sociology emerged in the 1920’s and the 1930’s. In this school the first in depth studies of urban sociology commenced. The lead sociologists involved with the University included Robert Park, Ernest Burgess and Louis Wirth. They explored two key themes of sociology; urban ecology and urbanism as a way of life. These concepts greatly enhanced our understanding of cities and urban life. Their studies revolved around urban land-use and its effect on society, resulting in an impersonal way of life due to the separation of the affluent from the working class and the lack of community in urban neighborhoods. Their research and ideas remain the basis of studies in urban sociology today and have ‘left a lasting impact on the
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It was set up in Chicago after the industrial revolution. The main focus was to develop an understanding of the migration of the population from rural quiet communities to the urban cities, which were becoming consumed by businesses, factories, and cramped housing. At the time U.S. was experiencing explosive growth in cities ‘none more pronounced than Chicago, which during this time period emerged as an “instant” metropolis. In the midst of this urban dynamism, a new university was founded on the principles of advanced research’* (W.G. Lutters, M. S. Ackerman, 1996, An Introduction to the Chicago School of Sociology. P. 2) The city of Chicago went from a small town of 10,000 in 1860 to a huge urban city with a population exceeding 2 million in 1910. This caused a great shift in the way of life. The social problems increased with living conditions deteriorating and crime increasing due to the lack of community and friendship among the inhabitants of the city. The pure vastness of the city led to alienation and distance in communities. The researchers at the University of Chicago wanted to decipher why the city had developed in the format that it did and how that had an affect on the way of …show more content…
The influence an urban environment has on the social life of its inhabitants is huge, according to Louis Wirth the city is ‘a controlling centre of economic, political and cultural life that has drawn the most remote communities of the world into its orbit and woven diverse areas.’*( A. Giddens, P.W. Sutton, 7th Edition 2015, Sociology. Polity press. P.210) Although in cities, many people live closely bundled together, there is notable distance between individuals in an urban setting. Many relationships are short-lived, insignificant, and meaningless to our personal lives. These kind of relationships according to Wirth are ‘secondary relationships’, which are generally just a means to an end. The levels of high mobility among people in cities allows them to travel great distances, meet many people, of different types, and this in itself heightens the level of animosity. These loosely formed relationships become part of our everyday lives. The lack of connection with each other leads to the need to succeed each other, as a result this weighs out the need for co-operation in social groups or communities. This forces boundaries between different
It was set up in Chicago after the industrial revolution. The main focus was to develop an understanding of the migration of the population from rural quiet communities to the urban cities, which were becoming consumed by businesses, factories, and cramped housing. At the time U.S. was experiencing explosive growth in cities ‘none more pronounced than Chicago, which during this time period emerged as an “instant” metropolis. In the midst of this urban dynamism, a new university was founded on the principles of advanced research’* (W.G. Lutters, M. S. Ackerman, 1996, An Introduction to the Chicago School of Sociology. P. 2) The city of Chicago went from a small town of 10,000 in 1860 to a huge urban city with a population exceeding 2 million in 1910. This caused a great shift in the way of life. The social problems increased with living conditions deteriorating and crime increasing due to the lack of community and friendship among the inhabitants of the city. The pure vastness of the city led to alienation and distance in communities. The researchers at the University of Chicago wanted to decipher why the city had developed in the format that it did and how that had an affect on the way of …show more content…
The influence an urban environment has on the social life of its inhabitants is huge, according to Louis Wirth the city is ‘a controlling centre of economic, political and cultural life that has drawn the most remote communities of the world into its orbit and woven diverse areas.’*( A. Giddens, P.W. Sutton, 7th Edition 2015, Sociology. Polity press. P.210) Although in cities, many people live closely bundled together, there is notable distance between individuals in an urban setting. Many relationships are short-lived, insignificant, and meaningless to our personal lives. These kind of relationships according to Wirth are ‘secondary relationships’, which are generally just a means to an end. The levels of high mobility among people in cities allows them to travel great distances, meet many people, of different types, and this in itself heightens the level of animosity. These loosely formed relationships become part of our everyday lives. The lack of connection with each other leads to the need to succeed each other, as a result this weighs out the need for co-operation in social groups or communities. This forces boundaries between different