Communes are a type of close-knit community with strong social
norms that characterize moralnets (moral networks). A sample of
contemporary communes operating during the 1970s was selected
to test the predictive power of the commitment scales over time and
assess their usefulness for describing 20th-century communes. The
mechanisms tested are the presence of strong leaders, cultural
homogeneity of members, joint investment, isolation, shared ideology, distinctive customs, and disciplinary action for deviancy. Despite differences, the results of these analyses indicate that the
commitment scales are robust; their patterns persist across samples,
methods, and centuries.
Kanter, R. (1972). Commitment and communityCambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
3.
Minturn, L., Gunning, K., Holloway, M., & Peterson, C. (1974). The peaceful communities In J. de Wit & W. Hartup (Eds.), Determinants of aggressive behavior.The Hague, Netherlands: Mouton.
4.
Minturn, L., Gunning, K., Holloway, M., & Peterson, C. (1975). Communes as a prototype of extended families Unpublished manuscript, University of Colorado, Boulder.
5.
Minturn, L., West, M.A., & Peterson, C. (1981). American communal societies: Theory and ethnography: A selected, annotated bibliographyMonticello, IL: Vance.
6.
Naroll, R. (1983). The moral order: An introduction to the human situationBeverly Hills, CA: Sage .
