The Heterogeneity Of The American Suburban Population Composition After 1970

In 1970, with its suburban population exceeding that of the urban, and a fundamental change of its suburban population composition, the U.S.A became a suburban country. In this thesis, the author tried to address the heterogeneity of the American suburban population and its influence on the suburban racial relationship. The whole thesis is composed of three parts, the preface, the main body and a brief conclusion.In the preface, some of the previous studies on the heterogeneity of the suburban population by American and Chinese scholars are reviewed. An outline of the thesis is provided and some important concepts that will appear in the following parts are addressed.The main body consists of four parts.The first chapter explores the whole process of American suburbanization. An overall view of this process, especially three stages of it is outlined.The second chapter explores the homogeneity of the American suburban population before 1970. It especially emphasized the homogeneity feature during 1950s and 1960s. The main class of the suburban population was middle class most of which were white-collars. Nuclear family and white people were in absolute dominant status.The third chapter addresses the heterogeneity of the American suburbs since 1970s. Three main features are summarized. Firstly, the racial heterogeneity is manifested not only by the increase of the amount of the minority people, but also by the fact that the infiltration of minority people into suburban areas largely decreased the amount of the homogenous white suburbs, which is a qualitative change. The social and historical background for the process of increasing heterogeneity is also analyzed. Secondly, the heterogeneity of suburban class structure is explored. It is reflected in many aspects. In the career composition, lower class that was represented by blue-collar workers increased. In the housing pattern, the number of single-family home decreased, whereas that of apartments and rental housing increased. The density of suburban housing increased. In respect of the role of the family, the husbands and wives of many families both went out to work, changing the traditional pattern that men went out to work and women stayed in home as house wives. Thirdly, the heterogeneity of family structure in suburbs is also probed. Before 1970, the suburban family pattern was mainly composed of nucleus families. But after 1970, the family pattern became more and more multiplex and heterogeneous.The forth chapter of the main body mainly analyzes the influence of suburban increasing heterogeneity on its racial relations. With the increasing heterogeneity of the suburbs, the...