Ernest Burgess
Urban sociologist who shaped criminology and family studies.
Ernest Watson Burgess (May 16, 1886 – December 27, 1966) was a Canadian-American urban sociologist and a longtime professor at the University of Chicago, where he also served as the 24th President of the American Sociological Society.
Born in Tilbury, Ontario, Burgess studied at Kingfisher College in Oklahoma before completing graduate work in sociology at the University of Chicago. He joined the faculty there in 1916 as an urban sociologist.
In 1921, Burgess co-wrote *Introduction to the Science of Sociology* with Robert Park. Often called the "Bible of Sociology," the textbook covered topics like human nature, social interaction, competition, conflict, and assimilation. It argued that social disorganization—not heredity—causes crime and disease in slum areas, pushing back against the eugenics movement. The book remained in use for decades after Burgess’s death.
With Park and Roderick McKenzie, Burgess published *The City* in 1925, which introduced the concentric zone model. This model divided cities into zones: the central business district, a transitional area of industry and deteriorating housing, working-class tenements, residential areas, and commuter suburbs. The work framed cities as evolving, Darwinian systems.
In criminology, Burgess developed a method for predicting parole success. He assigned scores of zero or one to 21 factors (such as job skills), then summed them. Higher scores strongly correlated with success: men scoring 14–21 had a 98% success rate, while those scoring 4 or lower had only a 24% rate. This approach, known as the Burgess method of unit-weighted regression, is still used in criminology.
Burgess also studied marriage, co-authoring *Predicting Success or Failure in Marriage* with Leonard Cottrell in 1939. They created a chart linking various variables to marital stability, though critics noted it ignored love and affection. Burgess himself never married.
Later in his career, Burgess researched aging and retirement. He edited *Aging in Western Societies* (1960), the third volume in a series by the Inter-University Training Institute in Social Gerontology. The first volume covered comparative data on population, employment, retirement, income, housing, and medical insurance. The second offered case studies from European countries on housing, family relations, and senior centers. The third provided a statistical supplemen
- born
- May 16, 1886, Tilbury, Ontario
- died
- December 27, 1966
- field
- Urban sociology, criminology, family studies
- nationality
- Canadian-American
- known_for
- Concentric zone model, Introduction to the Science of Sociology, Burgess method of unit-weighted regression
Lore & Background
Ernest Burgess was born in Tilbury, Ontario, and educated at Kingfisher College in Oklahoma before completing graduate studies in sociology at the University of Chicago. He returned to the University of Chicago as a faculty member in 1916, hired as an urban sociologist. In 1921, he collaborated with Robert Park to publish Introduction to the Science of Sociology, a textbook widely referred to as the 'Bible of Sociology' that argued social disorganization, not heredity, causes crime and disease in slum areas.
Burgess's groundbreaking research with Park provided the foundation for the Chicago School. In The City (1925), they conceptualized the city into concentric zones, including the central business district, transitional, working-class residential, residential, and commuter zones. In criminology, Burgess developed the Burgess method of unit-weighted regression, using 21 measures to predict parole success; men with the highest scores had a 98% success rate, while those with the lowest had only 24%.
Burgess also studied marriage and family, co-authoring Predicting Success or Failure in Marriage (1939) with Leonard Cottrell, though he was never married. Later, he researched aging and retirement, editing Aging in Western Societies (1960) as part of a three-volume series on social gerontology. He held several presidencies, including the American Sociological Society (1934) and the National Conference on Family Relations (1942).
Reader's Guide
Ernest Burgess's significance lies in his pioneering contributions to urban sociology, criminology, and family studies. His concentric zone model, developed with Robert Park, provided a foundational framework for understanding urban growth and social organization, influencing the Chicago School of sociology. His textbook Introduction to the Science of Sociology became a standard reference, shaping generations of sociologists. In criminology, the Burgess method of unit-weighted regression introduced actuarial prediction for parole outcomes, a method still used due to its accuracy. His work on marriage prediction, though criticized for omitting love, advanced empirical approaches to family studies. Burgess's research on aging helped establish social gerontology as a field. His legacy endures in the continued use of his methods and concepts in sociology and criminology.
Did You Know?
- Burgess's textbook Introduction to the Science of Sociology was often called the 'Bible of Sociology'.
- He developed the Burgess method of unit-weighted regression to predict parole success, achieving 98% accuracy for high-scoring inmates.
- Burgess was never married, despite co-authoring a book on predicting success in marriage.
- He served as editor of Aging in Western Societies (1960), the third volume of a series on social gerontology.
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