Donald Rosdil is a political scientist who received the M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. He has held teaching appointments at DePaul University, Dartmouth College, George Mason University, George Washington University and Towson University. In addition, he was a Visiting Scholar in the Urban Studies and Planning Program at the University of Maryland.  Rosdil’s research focuses on cultural and value change in the United States and its impact on urban policy outcomes, especially economic development and environmental sustainability. His work has appeared in Urban Affairs Review, the Journal of Urban Affairs, and Urban Studies.

"This wonderful book brings a fresh perspective to urban studies. Connecting cultural understanding to policy decisions about commerce, housing, gay rights, and environmental questions, it thoughtfully probes how transformations to the identity of space, and changes to life-styles and the movements they foster alter the self-consciousness of urban residents and remake political possibilities."—Ira Katznelson, Columbia University"Cogently written and thoroughly researched, this ground-breaking book offers a new paradigm in understanding urban economic development and progressive policy. Rosdil has persuasively identified the conditions under which nontraditional cultural movements shape major city policies."—Kenneth Wong, Brown University

• 1. Introduction and Overview 2. Critique of Political Economy Approaches to the Study of Urban Policy 3. Toward a Cultural Model of Urban Politics 4. Methodological Problems in the Study of Progressive Politics 5. Testing Explanations of Progressive Policy Outcomes 6. Comparative Case Analysis 7. A Cultural Explanation of Progressive Local Politics 8. The Challenge of Urban Policy Analysis in a Global Age

Donald Rosdil is a political scientist who received the M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. He has held teaching appointments at DePaul University, Dartmouth College, George Mason University, George Washington University and Towson University. In addition, he was a Visiting Scholar in the Urban Studies and Planning Program at the University of Maryland.  Rosdil’s research focuses on cultural and value change in the United States and its impact on urban policy outcomes, especially economic development and environmental sustainability. His work has appeared in Urban Affairs Review, the Journal of Urban Affairs, and Urban Studies.

"This wonderful book brings a fresh perspective to urban studies. Connecting cultural understanding to policy decisions about commerce, housing, gay rights, and environmental questions, it thoughtfully probes how transformations to the identity of space, and changes to life-styles and the movements they foster alter the self-consciousness of urban residents and remake political possibilities."—Ira Katznelson, Columbia University"Cogently written and thoroughly researched, this ground-breaking book offers a new paradigm in understanding urban economic development and progressive policy. Rosdil has persuasively identified the conditions under which nontraditional cultural movements shape major city policies."—Kenneth Wong, Brown University

• 1. Introduction and Overview 2. Critique of Political Economy Approaches to the Study of Urban Policy 3. Toward a Cultural Model of Urban Politics 4. Methodological Problems in the Study of Progressive Politics 5. Testing Explanations of Progressive Policy Outcomes 6. Comparative Case Analysis 7. A Cultural Explanation of Progressive Local Politics 8. The Challenge of Urban Policy Analysis in a Global Age

Donald Rosdil is a political scientist who received the M.A. and Ph.D. from the University of Chicago. He has held teaching appointments at DePaul University, Dartmouth College, George Mason University, George Washington University and Towson University. In addition, he was a Visiting Scholar in the Urban Studies and Planning Program at the University of Maryland.  Rosdil’s research focuses on cultural and value change in the United States and its impact on urban policy outcomes, especially economic development and environmental sustainability. His work has appeared in Urban Affairs Review, the Journal of Urban Affairs, and Urban Studies.

"This wonderful book brings a fresh perspective to urban studies. Connecting cultural understanding to policy decisions about commerce, housing, gay rights, and environmental questions, it thoughtfully probes how transformations to the identity of space, and changes to life-styles and the movements they foster alter the self-consciousness of urban residents and remake political possibilities."—Ira Katznelson, Columbia University"Cogently written and thoroughly researched, this ground-breaking book offers a new paradigm in understanding urban economic development and progressive policy. Rosdil has persuasively identified the conditions under which nontraditional cultural movements shape major city policies."—Kenneth Wong, Brown University

• 1. Introduction and Overview 2. Critique of Political Economy Approaches to the Study of Urban Policy 3. Toward a Cultural Model of Urban Politics 4. Methodological Problems in the Study of Progressive Politics 5. Testing Explanations of Progressive Policy Outcomes 6. Comparative Case Analysis 7. A Cultural Explanation of Progressive Local Politics 8. The Challenge of Urban Policy Analysis in a Global Age