ABSTRACT
Studies of the effects of micro-level contexts on human development and socio-economic ‘opportunity’ run the risk of excluding important factors, including the dynamism of those contexts and the effects of globalisation on local places. Comparative analyses are particularly demanding, since varied elements of an ‘opportunity structure’ may operate, some directly and others indirectly, to affect behaviour and outcomes of interest. This paper connects concerns about local place effects on human life to the larger global conversation about increased social inequality and sharper economic competition among localities, in effect, addressing sorting at macro, inter-local, and intra-local levels. The European studies presented in this volume are discussed, and a typology of interventions (actions to re-shape local place effects) is proposed for further debate.
