Bio: (1864-1944) American sociologist. After completing his undergraduate and master's studies in philosophy in the United States, Robert Park went on to doctoral studies in Germany, at the University of Heidelberg, where he was mentored by Wilhelm Windelband. After completing his doctoral studies, Park returned to America and worked for ten years as an assistant to African-American rights activist Booker T. Washington. In 1913, Park began teaching at the University of Chicago, where he co-founded the Chicago School of Urban Sociology with Ernest Burgess. After leaving the University of Chicago, Park taught at Fisk University, the so-called "black" university, from 1934 until his death.

Park's theoretical approach was influenced by the evolutionism of Herbert Spencer, the formal sociology of Simmel and Tönnies, the theoretical approach of Thomas W. Thomas and Znaniecki, the interactionist social psychology of Herbert Mead, and John Dewey's pragmatism. In his works, Park studied problems of urban sociology and racial and ethnic relations. He and Burgess jointly published two books that are key for the formation of the Chicago School of Urban Sociology - Introduction to the Science of Sociology (1921) and The City (1925). These two books laid the theoretical and methodological foundations for the study of urban social phenomena.

Park viewed sociology as a "natural science" that should study the relationships and processes that take place between different communities in society. Influenced by Simmel's teaching, Park adopted the view that social interaction should be viewed as a key sociological category. Social interaction has four main forms: contact, conflict, accommodation, and assimilation. There are always relations of "dominance" in society, that is, there are always one or more communities in society that are dominant. The relations of dominance and cooperation follow the rules of "succession", the most important of which are those that exist between different urban zones, each of which has a different function and demographic composition. Simmel's sociology also influenced Park's concept of social distance. Park saw a Jew, an immigrant, a homeless man, and a "marginal man" as examples of what Simmel defined through the concept of "foreigner".

Park formulated his sociological approach known as "human ecology". The city is a product of human nature, a state of mind (attitudes and feelings) that is maintained through customs and traditions. Human ecology is a science that studies the action of forces that, within the natural area of ​​human habitation in the city, lead to the creation of typical groups of individuals and institutions. The city represents the unity of moral, natural, and ecological order. A city is a place of creation of a new moral order. The city shattered the traditional moral order and led to the creation of a new order based on individual freedom and solidarity and based on common interests. The main natural factors that affect human ecology are: the physical and administrative division of the city into urban areas, traffic and communication technologies, and the economy based on the division of labor.

Due to the social and technical division of labor city is going through changes: specialization and rationalization of activities, creation of professions and professional organizations, and the growing predominance of secondary over primary relations between individuals. The physical and moral organization of the city act on each other and shape and change each other. "The organization of the city, the character of the urban environment and the discipline which it imposes is finally determined by the size of the population, its concentration and distribution within the city are" (Park, 1925). The city leads to the breakdown of the traditional way of life, close neighborly relations are lost, and people live in anonymity. The anonymity and intensity of city life, and especially the focus on work, earning money, and economic relations, has a devastating effect on the form and function of the church, school, and family institutions. Traditional forms of social control are losing their significance, especially in the communities of newly arrived immigrants. Changes in the economic, moral, and interpersonal relations in the city have led to the emergence of many social, moral, and mental disorders. The most significant negative consequences of the urban environment are: crime, alcoholism, homelessness, juvenile delinquency, etc.

Park wanted to study the "natural history" of individuals, groups, and institutions, and that history takes place within complex socio-ecological trajectories. Park considered qualitative methods to be the best methodological tool for the empirical study of such histories. These methods are: life histories obtained through long interviews, participatory observation, investigative journalism, and the like. As an analytical tool for processing this data, Park and Burgess used ecological maps, the most famous of which is the one on concentric ecological circles in Chicago (see Burgess).

City districts and neighborhood relations in them operate relatively independently of the wider physical and social urban environment. A big problem for many cities is the class and/or racially isolated neighborhoods, known as ghettos. Within such ghettos, a specific moral order is often formed. Park believed that racial relations always go through the following cycle: contact, conflict, accommodation, and eventually assimilation. Park defines accommodation as a process of reducing the level of conflicts to establish social order and stability. Assimilation, on the other hand, is a cultural fusion of different people and groups, because the attitudes and sentiments of other people and groups are adopted, which ultimately leads to a common cultural life. Prerequisites for assimilation are contacts within primary groups and a common language. Assimilation is not a cultural sameness, but a shared experience and sharing of mental patterns that enable the creation of a community with a unique view of collective goals. Park considered racial assimilation to be, not only a necessary but also a desirable product of racial relations. He viewed African-American communities in cities in the northern United States as internal immigrants, as many of them moved from the southern USA, where there were completely different economic, socio-environmental, and moral circumstances. 

Main works

The Man Farthest Down: A Record of Observation and Study in Europe (1912);

Introduction to the Science of Sociology (1921);

Old World Traits Transplanted: the Early Sociology of Culture (1921);

The Immigrant Press and Its Control (1922); 

The City: Suggestions for the Study of Human Nature in the Urban Environment (1925);

The University and the Community of Races (1932);

Race Relations and the Race Problem: A Definition and an Analysis (1939);

An Outline of the Principles of Sociology (1939);

Essays in Sociology  (1940); 

Race and Culture (1950); 

Human Communities: the City and Human Ecology (1952);  

Societies (1955); 

On Social Control and Collective Behavior (1967).