The changing nature of 'connectivity' within and between communities

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The ways communities are connected with each other and with the 'outside world' vary. In some groups strong internal bonds may exclude outsiders, while in others the connections enable a more inclusive approach to the world. Troubled communities tend to have more connections of the strongly bonded, exclusive kind. Structural and economic features of a society may affect the nature of connections within communities, and more work is needed on the effects of steep income gradients on the nature of communities locally as well as nationally. Community cohesion initiatives appear in many cases to have been successful, but further research is needed on the conditions that enable communities to develop cross-cutting forms of connectedness rather than strong, internal bonds. Social networking and other communication technology is enabling new kinds of 'virtual' community connections to form but these tend to reinforce existing kinds of community and may be restricted to particular kinds of user. People need to connect with others and to find identity in the connections they make; where opportunity for connection is weak, criminal offending is higher. Gangs may serve the purpose of giving identity where other forms of connection do not exist.