Neighborhood Responses to Stigmatized Urban Facilities

ABSTRACT:

A comparative analysis in urban Phoenix, Arizona, was made between a middle class host neighborhood surrounding a private mental hospital and a similar neighborhood not hosting such a facility. Attitudes toward nine other urban facilities generally located in or near neighborhoods were assessed. The host neighborhood with a mental hospital demonstrated greater tolerance for such a facility, but within the host neighborhood, there was greater rejection of the facility the closer the housing to the facility. The increased resistance appeared to center on practical problems such as traffic congestion and noise levels rather than on stigmatized views of patients. The findings lead to a number of policy implications relating to the successful siting of generally stigmatized urban facilities.