Social functions of community?

[butterfly]

Once again I need some help from the brilliant minds at revleft please.
So far I've got mutual support mechanism and sense of identity, can you think of anything else?

[butterfly]

C'mon folks...anyone doing social science?

[Potemkin]

Isn't a community everything? We are shaped into the individuals we are through interacting with the community. This would be the sense of identity you've already mentioned. From the standpoint of a member of the community, the community provides relationships, emotional support, physical aid, protection, etc. In the ideal communal society, it would share the (potential) burden of the young and old, those with special needs, etc., relieving the individual of having to assume sole responsibility for a member based on family ties.

I don't have any sources or anything. This is just off the top of my head, so beware if you're trying to write a paper or something. Also, perhaps you should define the type of "community" you're looking to find the social functions for?

Hope this helped.

[Hit The North]

For the American sociologist, Peter L. Berger, community is one of the more powerful circles of social control, inducing people to conform to its norms and values. The more tightly knit the community, the more able it is to police the behaviour of its members. The more atomised a community, the more infractions individuals can get away with.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_L._Berger

For the French sociologist, Pierre Bourdieu, community is one of the resources from which "habitus" is drawn.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierre_Bourdieu