Isolation in the South: Poverty and Transportation Infrastructure in the Black Belt

This study examines the relationship between transportation infrastructure and social well-being in the United States South, especially in the Black Belt. Specifically, this study focuses on the impact of airport accessibility and improvements on social well-being within the community capital framework in which built capital and political capital acted as a foundational basis for the broader concept of positive community capital. The results indicated that many cumulative disadvantages exist in the Black Belt of the southern United States. The research found that a higher level of airport accessibility is associated with a lower level of poverty and higher levels of health outcomes and net migration. The research further found that having a college and university in a community is associated with higher high school graduation rates, lower poverty rates, and lower unemployment rates. This research has important implications for addressing the cumulative disadvantages and isolation in the Black Belt

Isolation in the South: Poverty and Transportation Infrastructure in the Black Belt

This study examines the relationship between transportation infrastructure and social well-being in the United States South, especially in the Black Belt. Specifically, this study focuses on the impact of airport accessibility and improvements on social well-being within the community capital framework in which built capital and political capital acted as a foundational basis for the broader concept of positive community capital. The results indicated that many cumulative disadvantages exist in the Black Belt of the southern United States. The research found that a higher level of airport accessibility is associated with a lower level of poverty and higher levels of health outcomes and net migration. The research further found that having a college and university in a community is associated with higher high school graduation rates, lower poverty rates, and lower unemployment rates. This research has important implications for addressing the cumulative disadvantages and isolation in the Black Belt

Political Ideology And Ideological (Re)Alignment 1972-2006

This study tests the relationship of the 6 ideological variables and 7 contextual variables to shifts in ideological alignment through a latent class regression analysis for three periods of years (1972-1978, 1980-1992, 1993-2006). The latent class regression models determine the number of identifiable classes for each model. Using ideological realignment theory (Abramowitz and Saunders 1998) this study finds there has been a moderate polarization of opinions that has occurred, as well as, a moderate hardening of ideological beliefs with moral issues during the third time period becoming the driving force in ideological makeup. With regard to the culture wars hypothesis (Hunter 1991) there seems to be so much randomness in peoples overall ideological makeup that it hardly suggests a salient culture war is taking place. It also seems to matter very little what opinions individuals express on domain specific issues with regard to political ideology