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This paper examines the neighborhood context and the relationship between four types of social participation and the sense of powerlessness variant of alienation. Findings suggest a refinement and reanalysis of the relationship implied by much of the literature. The strong inverse correlations between participation and alienation found among white populations are not obtained for this population of blacks. Given relative neighborhood stability, some evidence indicates that the expected association may emerge among blacks, depending on individual status characteristics such as income and residency tenure. In retrospect, the study identifies three considerations which might shape future research on the topic.