Journal article
The importance of historical methods for building theories of urban environmental inequality
Environmental sociology, v 2(3), pp 254-264
02 Jul 2016
Abstract
Despite the large body of research, testable theories of the development of urban environmental inequality are still lacking. Instead, we have only a group of unconnected explanations for environmental inequality; the time in history in which they may operate, and the extent to which they can be generalized remain unspecified. Many (although not all) quantitative environmental justice studies use very small units of analysis, are cross-sectional, and use simplistic concepts of race and social class. The generalizability of historical qualitative studies tracing the process through which environmental inequality developed has not been specified. In this paper, I argue for the use of historical methods such as causal process tracing (CPT) to bridge the shortcomings of both quantitative empirical findings and qualitative historical case studies as material to build middle-range theory. Using material from my recent multi-method work tracing the development of environmental inequality in the Philadelphia area, I demonstrate the efficacy of historical methods (path dependence and CPT) for understanding the causal mechanisms that gave rise to environmentally burdened communities in the Philadelphia area. Hypotheses generated by the causal mechanisms and historical turning points identified in Philadelphia can be used to test the generalizability of middle-range theories of environmental inequality.
Metrics
24 Record Views
7 citations in Scopus
Details
- Title
- The importance of historical methods for building theories of urban environmental inequality
- Creators
- Diane M. Sicotte - Drexel University
- Publication Details
- Environmental sociology, v 2(3), pp 254-264
- Publisher
- Routledge
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Sociology
- Scopus ID
- 2-s2.0-85050719442
- Other Identifier
- 991019173869904721