Defining Community Essay

Communities play an essential role in the development of the self and learning about the stranger. Through communities, individuals are able to socialize and gain a greater understanding of each other. A community can be defined in many different ways based on every individual’s experience with it. Developing a strong community takes time. Some people, like Jeannette Walls, do not have the opportunity to develop strong communities throughout their childhood.

A community is a place where people around supposed to be able to live and thrive together. When one thinks of a community, the image that most likely is visualized is one of a place where each person lives harmoniously with all the other members of that community. While this may be the typical image of a community, it is not the realistic view. In reality communities can share both good and bad aspects. In Place Matters: Metropolitics for the Twenty-First Century Peter Dreier, John Mollenkopf, and Todd Swanstrom make the argument that the place a person lives ultimately matters over all else; the place which a person lives effects the choices that that he/she makes and determines his/her ability to obtain a

According to Stanhope and Lancaster (2008) defines a community as: “A social group determined by geographic boundaries and/or common values and interests. Its members know and interact with one another. It functions within a particular social structure and exhibits and creates norms, values, and social institutions” (World Health Organization [WHO], 1974, pg. 7).

Community is defined as a group a people living in an area under the same conditions. Realistically, a community is so much more than this definition. It is people and their different beliefs that form a community. In the town of Milagro, Amarante Cordova, Ruby Archuleta, and a town coming together to rescue a fellow community member from jail exemplify the true spirit of what community is.

The best way to define a community will never be clear. You have your own feelings on communities and our thoughts on it will always be different from everyone else's. Everyone has a different perspective on communities, it is endless. All of the definitions relate to what I think about a community. Community to me means “home”. A community is where I have grown up and learned important life lessons. The things that matter most to me in my community are my family, my

Communities play an essential role in the development of the self and learning about the stranger. Through communities, individuals are able to socialize and create a greater understanding of each other. In The Glass Castle, Jeannette Walls describes the community of which she felt most part of during her childhood. Walls says, “. . .

A community is a group of people who live in the same area, interact with each other, and share certain norms and values. A community is defined as a locality-based entity, composed of systems of formal organizations reflecting societal institutions, informal groups, and aggregates that are interdependent and whose function or expressed intent is to meet a wide variety of collective needs (Stanhope & Lancaster, 2012).

In these dorms, the initial interactions that socially code us throughout college are initiated. These social interactions create and solidify bonds between students that can continue for the rest of their lives. A change to the demographics of the freshman dorms doesn’t just create an immediate effect, but also affects every current and future resident of UC Davis. A freshmen social group that is initially less diverse will lead to a less diverse group of friends throughout the remaining years of their undergraduate studies. This reduces their social group to a less diverse group of individuals, which reduces the chance for them to interact with other cultures and overcome any form of culture shock that they are affected by, whether it be here in UC Davis or later in their careers. Freshmen dorms are the only place that nurtures cultural interaction to create a UC Davis community that is ultimately more unified, accepting, and respectful of all people and their different cultures.

I belong to the community of Allendale, Michigan. It is a community that has thankfully and gladly embraced me after I transferred from Grand Haven after my freshman year. Despite what may be assumed at first glance with Allendale being a smaller, close knit, conservative community, and Grand Haven being a larger and slightly more diverse area, the more accepting community was, or is, most definitely Allendale. Grand Haven's diversity actually separates people, seemingly by socioeconomic status; while, in Allendale, it seems that a person's socioeconomic status is not a determinant of popularity. I believe that, in the end, it all boils down to the people in the community just being different, in a good way. All of the classmates, teachers,

The definition of community when I google it, is “a group of people living in the same place or having a particular characteristic in common.” I would describe community as a group of people who have common goals, thoughts, or interests.

More than a destination at the end of the day, a community is a place people feel at home and a place where people want to feel safe at. Community responsibilities area unit a personality's duties or obligations to the community and embody cooperation, respect and participation. The thought goes on the far side thinking and acting as people to common beliefs concerning shared interests and life. A basic community responsibility is voting in elections. Being socially accountable means folks and organizations should behave ethically and with sensitivity toward social, cultural, economic and environmental problems. Striving for social responsibility helps people, organizations and governments have a positive impact on development, business

The definition provided in The American College Dictionary from 1964 says “a group of men or women leading a common life according to a rule.” I never really viewed community in this manner. Many of us think of the word “community” as a group of people who live near each other. We forget that a community is actually just a group of people with common interests or characteristics who often happen to live near each other. Communities can be bound by race, religion, economic standings, political standings, and most commonly, location. Frequently, communities fall into more than one of these categories.

A community is established when more than two people share the same values and through time this personal connection evolves into a fellowship governed by rituals, traditions, and a particular form of communication that when taken together makes a group of individuals whether living in a specific geographical area or connected by ideals so distinct that their distinguishing marks allow them to stand out from among the crowd. They do not just believe in something like an organization but they need each other to survive and thrive. A good example is the Old Order Amish Mennonite community wherein the community serves as source of identity, strength and provides the reason why they should sustain the community’s way of life.

Throughout my life, I have been privileged to know a strong sense of community. My understanding of community has been carved out and shaped by each community that I have been a part of and the subsequent life experiences that I have had by being a part of these communities. To me, community means a sense of belonging with people who have some capacity of like-mindedness. When you belong to a community, you feel like a piece of a larger puzzle that comes together to create a whole. Each community you belong to both influences you, and is influenced by you. Moreover, your belonging to a community generates a sense of unity and shares a common goal, value, or outlook.

The term community is a more than geographic boundaries. It is a group of people