Baumholder

Introduction

“Community is the organization of social activities that affords people access to what is necessary for day-to-day living, such as the school, grocery store, the hospital, house of worship, and other such social units and systems” (Netting, Kettner, McMurty, & Thomas, 2012, p. 132). Baumholder community is a small community located in western Germany. It is a formal town because it has many enforced boundaries. The town and the military post are geographical communities. The townspeople work in town because this is where he or she lives. The personnel on the military post were brought to Baumholder by the United States military to serve a role and perform a job. The residents of both communities are not working together for a common goal; therefore Baumholder is not a functional community.

“Ecological theorists focus on the interaction of resident characteristics, the use of physical space, and the social structures and technology within communities” (Netting et al, 2012, p. 144). The ecological perspective views the person in the center of his or her environment. Person and environment are seen as interacting with one another, influencing one another, and adapting to one another. A key concept is the focus upon how well an individual’s needs match with the resources in the environment and how well an individual adapts to function more successfully within his or her environment. “Human ecologists are particularly concerned about how place based communities deal with the processes of competition, centralization, concentration, integration, and succession” (Netting et al, 2012, p. 144).

The residents of the town of Baumholder are competing for the business from the military population, so the better the services he or she provides, the more customers he or she will attract. With the diminished population this can be seen when one frequents an establishment. The businesses see the better the customers are treated, the more frequently he...