Improve decision-making skills for community organizations and their leaders—from a participatory perspective! This book will show you how (and why) participatory communities come into being and what they can accomplish, regardless of the current political climate. It also examines leadership—and the skills community leaders need to develop to be most effective. You’ll find ethnographic and psychosocial perspectives on the relationship between families and community organizations, leadership interventions designed to facilitate more effective decision-making, and more—all from organizations making a very real difference in a country that has had a strong community work tradition since the 1960s. This book presents an essential overview of the dynamics of urban low-income communities in Venezuela. With examples drawn from organizations designed to help a population that has been neglected by its government, Leadership and Organization for Community Prevention and Intervention in Venezuela is a unique source of inspiration and practical know-how. The intensive training workshops and restructuring projects documented in this book have proven to be positive and effective tools, strengthening Venezuelan communities despite the political unrest that has plagued the country. In Leadership and Organization for Community Prevention and Intervention in Venezuela, you’ll learn how community organizations are: providing shelter for people displaced by natural disasters providing essential services when the government can’t—or won’t establishing community leadership roles—and helping community leaders to work more effectively transforming the perspectives of community leaders—from narcissistic to altruistic and much more! With this book, you’ll examine the interaction between community organization and leadership—using the liberating, dialogic, reflective, and conscientization approach developed by Latin American community psychology. The book’s approach is grounded and realistic. It highlights the outcomes of the authors’ participatory research and action in urban Venezuelan communities, focusing on organization, participation, modes of leadership, decision-making and meta-decision-making, the moral development—and moral dilemmas—of community leaders, and the interrelationship between family systems and community in Venezuela.

Improve decision-making skills for community organizations and their leaders--from a participatory perspective! This book will show you how (and why) participatory communities come into being and what they can accomplish, regardless of the current political climate. It also examines leadership--and the skills community leaders need to develop to be most effective. You'll find ethnographic and psychosocial perspectives on the relationship between families and community organizations, leadership interventions designed to facilitate more effective decision-making, and more--all from organizations making a very real difference in a country that has had a strong community work tradition since the 1960s. This book presents an essential overview of the dynamics of urban low-income communities in Venezuela. With examples drawn from organizations designed to help a population that has been neglected by its government, Leadership and Organization for Community Prevention and Intervention in Venezuela is a unique source of inspiration and practical know-how. The intensive training workshops and restructuring projects documented in this book have proven to be positive and effective tools, strengthening Venezuelan communities despite the political unrest that has plagued the country. In Leadership and Organization for Community Prevention and Intervention in Venezuela, you'll learn how community organizations are: providing shelter for people displaced by natural disasters providing essential services when the government can't--or won't establishing community leadership roles--and helping community leaders to work more effectively transforming the perspectives of community leaders--from narcissistic to altruistic and much more! With this book, you'll examine the interaction between community organization and leadership--using the liberating, dialogic, reflective, and conscientization approach developed by Latin American community psychology. The book's approach is grounded and realistic. It highlights the outcomes of the authors' participatory research and action in urban Venezuelan communities, focusing on organization, participation, modes of leadership, decision-making and meta-decision-making, the moral development--and moral dilemmas--of community leaders, and the interrelationship between family systems and community in Venezuela.

Discover how to better help those in your community in need of services Community Action Research comprehensively explores models for community action research, incorporating quantitative and qualitative research to highlight the advantages to community members as well as the volunteers/paraprofessionals who implement the services. Respected experts present the latest research on the fulfillment of the needs of community members as well as the benefits to the volunteers and paraprofessionals, including psychological empowerment, psychological sense of community, and other facets of personal development. Community Action Research is helpfully organized into two sections. The first section presents a sample of empirical studies that examines whether community action research demonstrated benefits for community members. The second section provides empirical studies that show the positive impact of community action research on the personal development of volunteers and paraprofessionals who provided the research-related services. This detailed text is carefully referenced and uses several tables to enhance understanding of research data. Community Action Research discusses: the Adolescent Diversion Project as an alternative to juvenile court home-based behavior modification programs for autistic children the People Awakening Project and the role paraprofessionals played in Alaska Native sobriety a crime prevention project launched by a residential neighborhood association the Actual Community Empowerment Reading Program which utilized community members as literacy tutors the Community Service Self-Efficacy Scale’s reliability and validity the Hawaiian Studies Program’s weekly participation in community service-learning exercises and more! Community Action Research is insightful reading for psychologists, sociologists, social workers, criminal justice researchers and professionals, community counselors, practitioners and researchers in community prevention and intervention, clinical supervisors, service learning specialists, educators, students, and mental health and human services program administrators, planners, or evaluators.

Discover different dimensions of the meaning of home across political, cultural, and geographic boundaries! Psychological, Political, and Cultural Meanings of Home brings a unique multidisciplinary, multicultural approach to address the interconnection of diverse experiences with the meaning of home. Filled with useful insights from respected authorities, this book shows you that the meaning of home can be incredibly varied, especially when viewed in the context of community psychology and social work. Explore the multiple facets of the meaning of “home,” and discover how our personal, professional, cultural, and political background contributes to how we envision or experience home. From physical dwellings such as a convent or a prison, through political frameworks that confirm or challenge the status quo, on through the related meanings of home that cross cultural and geographical boundaries, Psychological, Political, and Cultural Meanings of Home presents an added dimension of what home truly can be. You will learn that home is a volatile mix of yearning and loss, of being at home or searching for it, and that this very mix is the framework that reflects each differing belief. With Psychological, Political, and Cultural Meanings of Home you’ll explore: the changing meanings of home for Taiwanese employers of foreign domestics under globalization the opportunities and critical success factors for work and career in the home the complexities and restrictions of convent life as home how women detainees in a large urban county jail form altered definitions of “home” how novelists can give a powerful voice to the homeless by creating an inner image that contains all essential elements of home the cultural constructions surrounding the ambiguous lyrics of “Sweet Home Chicago” the role of childhood immigration in the construction of self-identity the relationship between country of origin and the ability to create a sense of home in other countries and cultures the recreation of home in diverse places by the nomad, who carries home as an essential psychological belonging within Psychological, Political, and Cultural Meanings of Home is a fascinating, eye-opening book for those in community studies, psychology, sociology, culture studies, literature, and women’s studies.

Six Community Psychologists Tell Their Stories: History, Contexts, and Narrative presents the unique opportunity to examine how culture and social norms have combined with chance, coincidence, and serendipity to form the professional identities of men and women who were among the first generation trained to work in the field of community psychology. The book’s contributors—disciples of those who founded the sub-field—provide insights into the factors (social status, family history, education, social environment, cultural events, important ideas) that furthered their professional development in an emerging field. Their stories—still works in progress—go far beyond facts, figures, dates and details to document what they’ve done with their lives—and why. Six esteemed community psychologists—three men who began their careers as the field was established in the mid-1960s and three women who took part in the increased opportunities available in the 1970s—recall how important events and social movements affected them as they fulfilled their personal and professional goals. They discuss the effects of family values and styles, class, ethnic status, gender, racism, anti-Semitism, the power of social settings, supportive education and work settings, and the impact of post-World War II government programs on their education, including the G.I. Bill, and the establishment of United States Public Health Service fellowships. Their stories touch on many common themes, including social marginality and sex discrimination, making personal discoveries in response to educational experiences, the significance of fate, and the experience of gaining a new or renewed sense of self through meaningful events, occasions, and people. These Six Community Psychologists Tell Their Stories: Dr. Jean Ann Linney (University of South Carolina), whose experiences involve a combination of idealism, supportive contexts, and good fortune Dr. Julian Rappaport (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign), who views himself as an “insider/outsider,” whose personal and professional identity crosses traditional boundaries Dr. N. Dickon Reppucci (University of Virginia), who became a community psychologist by accident, an outgrowth of his involvement with social protest in the 1960s Dr. Marybeth Shinn (New York University), whose story reflects her interest in the social contexts of neighborhoods and community settings Dr. Edison J. Trickett (University of Illinois at Chicago), who writes of the life experiences that have influenced both his work and his longtime involvement in folk music Dr. Rhona S. Weinstein (University of California at Berkeley), whose work in the dynamics of self-fulfilling prophecies in educational settings developed early in her career Insightful commentary on their recollections is provided by two distinguished scholars—Henrika Kuklick, Science Historian at the University of Pennsylvania, and Dan McAdams, Professor of Psychology at Northwestern University. Six Community Psychologists Tell Their Stories: History, Contexts, and Narrative is a unique resource for community psychologists, autobiographical researchers, and anyone interested in the history of psychology.

Increase the effectiveness of prevention programs by altering community and social settings! Understanding Ecological Programming: Merging Theory, Research, and Practice contains vital information to help you become a better community-based program designer using ecological programming. Focused on the basic concept of the ecological progra

For some, socialism is a potent way of achieving economic, political and social transformations in the twenty-first century, while others find the very term socialism outdated. This book engages readers in a discussion about the viability of socialist views on education and identifies the capacity of some socialist ideas to address a range of widely recognized social ills. It argues that these pervasive social problems, which plague so-called ‘developed’ societies as much as they contribute to the poverty, humiliation and lack of prospects in the rest of the world, fundamentally challenge us to act. In our contemporary world-system, distancing ourselves from the injustices of others is neither viable nor defensible. Rather than waiting for radically new solutions to emerge, this book sees the possibility of transformation in the reconfiguration of existing social logics that comprise our modern societies, including logics of socialism. The book presents case studies that offer a critical examination of education in contemporary socialist contexts, as well as reconsidering examples of education under historical socialism. In charting these alternatives, and retooling past solutions in a nuanced way, it sets out compelling evidence that it is possible to think and act in ways that depart from today’s dominant educational paradigm. It offers contemporary policy makers, researchers, and practitioners a cogent demonstration of the contemporary utility of educational ideas and solutions associated with socialism. A pioneering collection of essays which is central to understanding the historical and contemporary meanings of socialism in the context of neoliberal globalization. It is a most timely contribution to a growing intellectual project that challenges the hegemony of capitalism, while re-thinking and theorizing alternatives. Iveta Silova, Associate Professor of Comparative Education, Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA, USA In this significant contribution to recent scholarship the authors use the lens of socialist education to offer an original critique of hegemonic capitalism, and present an intellectually rigorous search for alternatives by reconsidering historical socialism and advancing promising educational experiments that challenge the 'global architecture of education'. Anders Breidlid, Professor of International Education and Development, Oslo University College, Norway