Women as a group hold little power in the social system which increases women's vulnerability to domestic violence. According to Merton (1970), social problems may be revealed through the disaster recovery process. A coraHunity1s organizational response to social problems such as wife abuse depends upon organizational members' perceptions. The data suggest that organizational perceptions of domestic violence largely depend upon the setting or environment in which an organization exists and operates. A second factor that greatly determines an organization's perception of domestic violence after disaster is organizational type. Organizations which provide services to domestic violence victims pre-disaster are more likely to perceive domestic violence following disaster than organizations which do not provide domestic violence related services prior to disaster.

This study investigates the recovery efforts provided for low income and ethnic minority populations by organizations during the permanent housing phase of recovery in Watsonville, California, following the Loma Prieta earthquake of October 17, 1989. The case study format is used to discover what activities were performed and why each organization chose to perform them. Dynes and Quarantelli's (1968) typology of organization is used to explain how and why established, expanding, extending and emergent organizations participated in the recovery efforts. The findings indicate that the type of organization dictated the kind of tasks each organization performed. Organizations maintained activities during recovery for which they had experience, expertise and proficiency.

This study examines the relationship between social stress and gender role differentiation. Crowd and collective behavior literature suggests two competing hypotheses. Social contagion theories suggest that gender roles become dedifferentiated in crowds. Social structural theories suggest that gender roles in crowds parallel institutional gender roles. The case study format is used to assess the relationship. Six crowd events, representing varying levels of social stress, were observed. Data were gathered via systematic observations, interviews and document analysis. The findings indicate that gender roles in crowds parallel institutional gender roles. Culturally prescribed gender expectations endure across social stress settings.

Two primary sources of data were utilized: official church records, and a questionnaire survey administered to a random sample of Anglo and African-American United Methodists in the North Texas area. Questions covered socio-demographic and theological matters as well as perceptions of racism in the church. Ministers and lay members were surveyed separately.