Community psychology is concerned with the community as the unit of study. This contrasts with most psychology, which focuses on the individual. Community psychology also studies the community as a context for the individuals within it,Jim Orford, Community Psychology: Challenges, Controversies and Emerging Consensus, John Wiley and Sons, 2008 and the relationships of the individual to communities and society.
Community psychologists seek to understand the functioning of the community, including the quality of life of persons within groups, organizations and institutions, communities, and society. They aim to enhance the quality of life through collaborative research and action.Dalton, J.H., Elias, M.J., & Wandersman, A. (2001). "Community Psychology: Linking Individuals and Communities." Stamford, CT: Wadsworth. In general, they help individual to solve social problems and adapt to their work and living groups by applying psychological principles, ideas and point of view.
Community psychology employs various perspectives within and outside psychology to address issues of communities, the relationships within them, and related people's attitudes and behaviour.
Julian Rappaport discusses the perspective of community psychology as an ecological perspective on the person-environment fit (this is often related to work environments) being the focus of study and action instead of attempting to change the personality of an individual or the environment when an individual is seen as having a problem.Rappaport, J. (1977). "Community Psychology: Values, Research, & Action." New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
Closely related disciplines include community practice, ecological psychology, environmental psychology, critical psychology, cross-cultural psychology, social psychology, political science, public health, sociology, social work, applied anthropology, and community development.Maton, K. I., Perkins, D. D., & Saegert, S. (2006). Community psychology at the crossroads: Prospects for interdisciplinary research. American Journal of Community Psychology, 38(1-2), 9-21.
In the United States, community psychology grew out of the community mental health movement, but evolved dramatically as early practitioners incorporated their understandings of political structures and other community contexts into perspectives on client services.Levine, M., & Perkins, D.V. (1997). "Principles of Community Psychology (2nd Ed)". New York: Oxford University Press. However, in other regions, it has had different origins. In much of Latin America, for example, it developed from social psychology as a response to the "crisis of social psychology" and the search for psychological theory and practice relevant to the social problems of the region.Montero, M. & Serrano García, I. (2011). Historias de la psicología comunitaria en América Latina: Participación y transformación. Paidós.
History of community psychology in the US In the 1950s and 1960s, many factors contributed to the beginning of community psychology in the US. Some of these factors include: A shift away from socially conservative, individual-focused practices in health care and psychology into a progressive period concerned with issues of public health, prevention and social change after World War II and social psychologists' growing interest in racial and religious prejudice, poverty, and other social issues Levine, M., Perkins, D.D., & Perkins, D.V. (2005). Principles of community psychology: Perspectives and Applications (3rd Edition). New York: Oxford University Press. (p. 64-69) The perceived need of larger-scale mental illness treatment for veterans Psychologists questioning the value of psychotherapy alone in treating large numbers of people with mental illness The development of community mental health centers and de-institutionalization of people with mental illnesses into their communities
Swampscott Conference In 1965, several psychologists met to discuss the future of community mental health as well as discuss the issue of only being involved with problems of mental health instead of the community as a whole. The Swampscott Conference is considered the birthplace of community psychology. A published report on the conference proposed that the role of the community psychologist 'may ... be seen as that of a "participant-conceptualizer." In 1987, the American Journal of Community Psychology published a special issue to commemorate the creation of the discipline.American Journal of Community Psychology: Volume 15, Issue 5
Theories, concepts and values in community psychology
Ecological levels of analysis James Kelly (1966; Trickett, 1984) developed an ecological analogy used to understand the ways in which settings and individuals are interrelated. Unlike the ecological framework developed by Bronfenbrenner (1979), the focus of Kelly's framework was not so much on how different levels of the environment may impact on the individual, but on understanding how human communities function. Specifically, Kelly suggests that there are 4 important principles that govern people in settings: adaptation: i.e. that what individuals do is adaptive given the demands of the surrounding context. It is a two-way process: Individuals adapt to the restrictions, constraints, and quality of the environment, while the environment adapts to its members Examples: In regards to adaption of the individual, take for instance when an individual adapts to the demands of a new job, they adapt to that environment by learning or acquiring any necessary skills that they may need to perform their tasks well. On the environmental side of adaption, we can imagine various situations involving the family, such as the birth of a child, new job of a parent, or when children attend college and move away from home; in all of these instances the environment adapted as necessary to the changes in its members succession: every setting has a history that created current structures, norms, attitudes, and policies, and any intervention in the setting must appreciate this history and understand why the current system exists in the form that it does. This principle applies to families, organizations, and communities; further, an implication of noting and understanding succession in these units is that psychologists must understand the history of that unit (family, organization, or community) before attempting to implement an intervention plan cycling of resources: each setting has resources that need to be identified and possibilities for new resources to be developed; a resource perspective emphasizes a focus on strengths of individuals, groups, and institutions within the setting and interventions are more likely to succeed if they build on such existing strengths, rather than introduce new external mechanisms for change. There are personal resources which include individual talents, strengths, or specialties, as well as social resources such as shared norms, beliefs, or values; further, aspects of the physical environment can be considered resources, such as calm resting places, a library, and other qualities of the space in particular interdependence: settings are systems, and any change to one aspect of the setting will have consequences for other aspects of the setting, so any intervention needs to anticipate its impact across the entire setting, and be prepared for unintended consequences. When we look at a school, for instance, as a real-world example, the interdependent parts include: students, teachers, administrators, students' parents, faculty and staff (secretaries, janitors, counselors, nurses), board members, and taxpayers
First-order and second-order change
Because community psychologists often work on social issues, they are often working toward positive social change. Watzlawick, et al. (1974) differentiated between first-order and second-order change and how second-order change is often the focus of community psychology.Watzlawick, P., Weakland, J., & Fisch, R. (1974). "Change: Principles of problem formation and problem resolution." New York: Norton. first-order change: positively changing the individuals in a setting to attempt to fix a problem second-order change: Attending to systems and structures involved with the problem to adjust the person–environment fit
As an example of how these methods differ, consider homelessness. A first-order change to "fix" homelessness would be to offer shelter to one or many homeless people. A second-order change would be to address issues in policy regarding affordable housing.
Prevention and health promotion Community psychology emphasizes principles and strategies of preventing social, emotional and behavioral problems and wellness and health promotion at the individual and community levels, borrowed from Public health and Preventive medicine, rather than a passive, "waiting-mode," treatment-based medical model. Universal, selective, primary, and indicated or secondary prevention (early identification and intervention) are particularly emphasized. Community psychology's contributions to prevention science have been substantial, including development and evaluation of the Head Start Program.
Empowerment One of the goals of community psychology involves empowerment of individuals and communities that have been marginalized by society.
One definition for the term is "an intentional, ongoing process centered in the local community, involving mutual respect, critical reflection, caring, and group participation, through which people lacking an equal share of resources gain greater access to and control over those resources" (Cornell Empowerment Group).Zimmerman, M.A. (2000). Empowerment Theory: Psychological, Organizational and Community Levels of Analysis. "Handbook of Community Psychology," 43–63.
Rappaport's (1984) definition includes: "Empowerment is viewed as a process: the mechanism by which people, organizations, and communities gain mastery over their lives."Rappaport, J. (1984). Studies in empowerment: Introduction to the issue. "Prevention in Human Services," 3, 1–7.
While empowerment has had an important place in community psychology research and literature, some have criticized its use. Riger (1993), for example, points to the paradoxical nature of empowerment being a masculine, individualistic construct being used in community research.Riger, S. (1993). What's wrong with empowerment? "American Journal of Community Psychology," 21(3), 279–292 Community psychologist Guy Holmes critiqued empowerment as a vague concept replete with what Wolf Wolfensberger has called 'high craze value' i.e. a fashionable term that means different things to different people, and ultimately means everything and nothing. Certainly few community psychologists would agree with Mao that 'power grows out of the barrel of a gun.'
In the 1990s, the support and empowerment paradigm (Racino, 1992)Racino, J. (2000). Table 1.1 A comparison of the rehabilitation, independent living and support paradigms. (p.7) Personnel Preparation in Disability and Community Life: Toward Universal Approaches to Support. Springfield, IL: Charles C. Thomas Publishers. at amazon.com was proposed as an organizing concept to replace or complement the prior rehabilitation paradigm, and to acknowledge the diverse groups and community-based work of the emerging community disciplines.
Social justice A core value of community psychology is seeking social justice through research and action. Community psychologists are often advocates for equality and policies that allow for the wellbeing of all people, particularly marginalized populations. For example, in May 2019 in the City of Brighton and Hove - Unframed Lives was an event about homelessness and austerity.
Diversity