His interest in urban life began when he read William Foote Whiteâ€™s Street Corner Society while in graduate school. His dissertation focused on neighborhood context as it relates to community social ties, psychological sense of social integration, and psychological well-being. Since then, he has worked on research projects related to community disasters like the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Disaster and the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center. Currently, he is analyzing data from the Program on Human Development in Chicago Neighborhoods, with an interest in positive youth development and the transition to young adulthood.