Community empowerment and social capital are terms that can be used to describe the interactions between neighborhoods and government in order to maintain democracy. Hunter (1953) and Dahl (1961) researched this topic by observing the interactions between elected officials and average citizens. In later years, Putnam (2001) studied the levels of social capital of adult populations. Lappe and DuBois (1995) and Diers (2004) studied the interactions among neighborhood advocates, elected officials, and average citizens. Which population has the best understanding of its local government and outlook towards its neighborhood? The municipalities represented in the 2010 Regional Neighborhood Networking Conference were surveyed as part of this exploratory study. The data were divided into three categories: position in society, municipality size, and gender. In regard to the first category, position in society, the cross-tabulations and difference of means tests demonstrated that neighborhood advocates responded more positively to community services, but advocates were least likely to correctly name their form of local government and were least satisfied with their quality of life. Elected officials were more likely to correctly name their form of local government, attend meetings, and be satisfied with the quality of life in the community. In regard to the second category, municipality size, participants from medium-sized cities were more likely to identify the municipality as participating in the National Flood Insurance Program, be satisfied with the quality of life in the community, correctly name their form of government, and attend meetings. The third category of gender did not result in any statistically significant findings. The combined data suggest that all members of society need additional educational opportunities in order to insure that democracy is maintained.

A dissertation, "The Understanding and Perceptions of Local Government: A Study of Position in Society, Municipality Size, and Gender," by Eric Dustin Owens.