Understanding social cohesion: The case of a demographically changing community in the United States The case of a demographically changing community in the United States

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Published: Jan 21, 2026
DOI: https://doi.org/10.12681/scad.44213
Keywords:
Social cohesion, community, ethnic diversity, cultural diversity, Social Dominance theory.
Dina Refki
University at Albany, State University of New York
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1292-1750
Esther (Kyu Yon) Kim
Center for Women in Government & Civil Society at the University at Albany, SUNY
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1292-1750
Rukhsana Ahmed
University at Albany, State University of New York
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1292-1750
Jeanette Altarriba
University at Albany, State University of New York
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1292-1750
Kyung Hyun Park
University at Albany, State University of New York
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1292-1750
Abstract

ABSTRACT
Social cohesion is associated with community welfare and its members’ wellbeing and quality of life. Studies have provided mixed answers to the question of whether ethnic diversity erodes social cohesion. This study contributes to this body of literature by adapting, testing, and  refining an instrument that measures social cohesion in a rural ethnically homogenous region of the Northeast United States; and by using the validated instrument to assess the effects of nascent diversity on community  members’ perceptions of social cohesion. We predicted that diversification would activate dynamics of social inequality and dominance, consistent with Social Dominance theory.Comparison of perceptions of multiple groups showed that male participants and Black
residents reported lower level of trust and that  culturally diverse residents are less likely to display high level of social cohesion and more likely to feel isolated.

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Author Biographies
Dina Refki, University at Albany, State University of New York

Dina Refki, D.A. is the Director of the Center for Women in Government & Civil Society (CWGCS), and Clinical Professor at the Department of Public Administration & Policy, Rockefeller College of Public Affairs & Policy, University at Albany. She also the founder and director of the Institute on Immigrant Integration Research & Policy, Rockefeller Institute of Government, State University of New York. Her research focuses on the intersections of socially constructed identities, cultures and nstitutional structures and explores their role in shaping economic, social and civic outcomes for minoritized populations. She is the lead author of the Data Gateway, a first in the nation tool that measures the economic and social integration of immigrants and creates a multi-year scorecard to account for the performance of different localities in integrating immigrants in the economic and social fabric of their communities. Her research also examines structural and systematic adaptations required to facilitate the integration of foreignborn residents (contact Author: [email protected])

Esther (Kyu Yon) Kim, Center for Women in Government & Civil Society at the University at Albany, SUNY

Esther (Kyu Yon) Kim, Ph.D., is Research Associate at the Center for Women in Government &
Civil Society at the University at Albany, SUNY. She earned her doctorate in Educational Psychology and Methodology, where her dissertation focused on the social well-being of immigrantorigin students. Her research interests include gender equity in education and emp

Rukhsana Ahmed, University at Albany, State University of New York

Rukhsana Ahmed is Professor of Communication, Faculty Associate at the Center for the Elimination of Minority Health, and Faculty Fellow at the Center for Technology in Government at
the University at Albany, State University of New York, New York, USA. She is the Co-Founder
and Co-Director of the Health and Equity Justice Lab at UAlbany and Georgia State University.
Her research examines the role of communication, culture, media, and technology in shaping
health outcomes among marginalized communities and promoting broader organizational and
social changes and innovations in local, national, and international health contexts. She is the
Chief Editor of the Health Communication section of Frontiers in Communication. Her recent
co-edited book is titled Theory and Application of Health Acculturation: A Communication Perspective (2024; Lexington Books). She received the Eastern Communication Association 2024
Distinguished Research Fellows Award.

Jeanette Altarriba, University at Albany, State University of New York

Jeanette Altarriba is Professor of Psychology and Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at the
University at Albany, State University of New York, Albany, New York, USA. She is the Founder
and Director of the Cognition and Language Laboratory at UAlbany. Her most recent publications
include: El-Dakhs, D. A. S., Ahmed, M. M., Altarriba, J., & Sonbul (2024), Differential Emotional
Expression in Autobiographical Narratives: The case of Arabic-English Bilinguals, International
Journal of Bilingualism; and Toglia, M., Otgar, H., Altarriba, J., Erikson, W. B. (Eds.), Interdisciplinary Perspectives and Advances in Understanding Adaptive Memory (Oxford University Press,
2024). Her research interests focus on bilingualism, emotion, adaptive and survival memory, and
cohesion and adaptability of various demographic groups

Kyung Hyun Park , University at Albany, State University of New York

Dr. Kyung Hyun Park specializes in educational psychology, with a focus on gifted education
and talent development from a lifelong perspective. Her research primarily focuses on racially,
ethnically, and culturally marginalized and underrepresented talented young people. Currently,
she is a postdoctoral fellow at the Department of Medical Education, Yonsei University College
of Medicine in Seoul, South Korea.

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