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aims to promote. Youth who engage in civic relationships with their parents and neighbors are exposed to • elements central to "sense of community," (MacMillan and Chavis, 1986). Sense o f community is a psychological variable used to define the beliefs and attitudes one holds about neighbors and neighborhoods (McMillan and Chavis, 1986). Elements such as membership, influence, integration and fulfillment of needs, and shared emotional connection are all elements that contribute to sense of community. In relation to the Neighborhood Liaison program, these elements appear to b e inherent as Liaisons aim to foster increased contribution, civic involvement, and social engagement. In fact, neighborhoods and the act of neighboring significantly contribute to developing and maintaining sense of community (Glynn, 1986). Additionally, greater sense of community is associated with more participation in block associations, increased neighborhood satisfaction, and more positive social relations with neighbors (Chavis and Wandersman, 1990). Sense of community and participation are most closely linked on blocks with more children, more educated residents, and more long-term residents (Perkins and Long, 2002). When citizens of a community utilize their social connectivity to mobilize around particular issues • such as emergency preparedness, social capital is built. While researchers have debated about the elements necessary for social capital, the concept can most simply be described as a resource that arises from the structure of social relationships in a c ommunity (Coleman, 1990). This structure facilitates more efficient organization around issues pertinent to the community. Perkins and Long (2002) identified that this kind of social organization can be either formal or informal, but the relationships must involve trust. The authors drew upon the literature to devise a definition that included both the behavioral and cognitive aspects of social capital and defined social capital in terms of four components: 1) trust in neighbors (sense of community), 2) trust in the efficacy of organized collective action, 3) informal neighboring behavior, and 4) formal participation in community organizations. Perkins and Long (2002) have investigated the strength of each of these elements in promoting community participation and found "sense of community" to be consistently predictive of the other three dimensions of social capital. Since s ense o f c ommunity can p otentially c ontribute t o g reater c ommunity p articipation,trust, and satisfaction, the role of Neighborhood Liaison becomes a key factor in fostering neighborhood cohesion • through their organization of block parties, facilitation of contact with neighbors, and mobilization around 34