Week 9: Community Psychology (Chapter 12)

Question 1

Community Psychology

Answer 1

• The study of how the community impacts the behaviour (and wellbeing) of members within a community.
• How an individuals behaviour impacts their communities.

Question 2

Agency

Answer 2

Our lives are shaped primarily by our individual traits.

• ex. genes, skills, personality, cognitions, etc.

Question 3

Structure

Answer 3

Our lives are shaped by our context.

• ex. family, friends, class, religion, gender, ethnicity, geographical region, socio-political context, etc.

Question 4

The Community Psychology Perspective

Answer 4

• Considers how individuals, communities, and societies all interact.

Question 5

Community VS. “Traditional” Psychology

Answer 5

Community Psychology:

• Takes on a structural/ecological perspective.
• Someone is homeless because of contextual issues (ex. a shortage of affordable housing).

Traditional Psychology

• Takes on an individualistic perspective.
• “Someone is homeless because of an individual factor” (ex. mental illness).

Question 6

4 Components Needed to Develop a Sense of Community

Answer 6

1. Membership:

• The idea that a community has geographical or social boundaries, and we can determine who belongs in the community and who does not.

2. Influence:

• The power an individual has within a community and the power the community has over the individual.

3. Integration and Fulfillment of Needs:

• The idea of shared values among community members, satisfying each other’s needs, and sharing goods and resources.

4. Shared Emotional Connection:

• Community members in a cohesive community will feel a shared bond with others within their community.

Question 7

Sense of Community Online

Answer 7

• Finding membership online results were mixed.
• Evidence for a sense of influence was NOT strongly supported.
• There was slightly more evidence for integration and fulfillment of needs.
• Support for shared emotional connection was limited.
• Together, research suggests that social media creates “network individualism”.

Question 8

Photovoice

Answer 8

Participatory research method that is rooted in values of empowerment and education.

Process:

• Community members take photos of their lived experience and write a caption.
• The photos are shared and the importance is explained to others.

In this process, participants are given a voice that may otherwise not be heard.

Question 9

Influencing Policy

Answer 9

Policies are plans and guidelines for actions and decision making to achieve desired outcomes in government, business, etc.

Researchers will…

• Write a report or paper that includes policy recommendations.
• They will then send the report to government officials and other policy makers.

Question 10

Community-Based Participatory Research

Answer 10

Researchers and community members collaborate in the research process.

• There is NO hierarchy between researchers and community members.