Testing the decline-of-community thesis: neighborhood organizations in Seattle, 1929 and 1979.

Two sets of hypotheses about the organizations - the first dealing with changes in resident participation and the second with changes in functional orientation - are derived from the natural- and limited-community models. The data indicate a clear trend toward a more exclusively political emphasis among Seattle neighborhoods but cast doubt on the simple 'gemeinschaft' characterization of these areas at an earlier point in time. Concludes that, if the decline-of-community thesis is to give an accurate description of the transformation in urban neighborhood life during the past half-century, the natural-community model should be revised. -from Authors