What is Community Psychology Flashcards
1
Q
What is psychology
A
- Often defined in terms of the study of individuals
- Social phenomena is studied in terms of social cognition
- We usually try to cut out the environment to just study the stimuli
2
Q
Who is a community psychologist
A
- A psychologist who applies scientific discoveries and interventions to the community
2
Q
Limitations of studying the individual
A
- Everyone is different
- We’re good at understanding how different factors may impact a person, but we aren’t good at doing anything about it
- Very weternized
- There are no truly individual problems or interventions
- There may be no true psychology of the individual
3
Q
What is community psychology
A
- Concerns the relationships of individuals with organizations, communities, and societies
- Focuses not on the individual or community alone but on their linkages
- Integrates research and action to understand and enhance quality of life for individuals, communities, and societies
- Guided by core values
- Uses interdisciplinary methods and collaborations
- Fields of study or practice do not “own” an issue or problem
- Interdisciplinary: We need to know about all dimensions of life (money, laws, regulations, etc.)
4
Q
How do we do experimentation if we don’t have control
A
- We get into the environment and understand the complexity of the situations
- We do this by:
- Building relationships
- Going to community meetings, meeting key informations, etc.
- Essentially, building trust with them and showing them we care
5
Q
Fundamental principles of community psychology
A
- Respect for diversity
- Attention to the importance of context and the environment
- Ecological level of analysis
- Empowerment
- Prevention rather than treatment
- Social justice
- Emphasis on strengths and competencies
- Social change
- Action research
- Interdisciplinary perspective is best
6
Q
Why is respect for diversity important in community psychology
A
- Required for understanding individuals in communities
- Things like:
- Ethnicity/Race
- Gender
- Sexuality
- Social class
- Etc.
7
Q
Why is attention to the importance of context and the environment important in community psychology
A
- Lewin says behaviour is a function of the interaction between the person and the environment
- Uses the equation B=f(P,E)
8
Q
Ecological Levels of Analysis
A
- Microsystems
- Mesosystems
- Exosystems
- Macrosystems
9
Q
What does empowerment mean as a principle component of community psychology
A
- Enhancing the possibility that people can more actively control their own lives
- Includes
- Respect
- Self Determination
- Self Efficacy
- Empowerment at individual, group, organizational, and community levels
10
Q
Prevention as a central theme in community psychology
A
- We want to prevent problems before they happen
- Society thinks it’s cheaper to no fix the problem and deal with the consequences when in fact that is not the truth
- We like to follow the IOM (institue of medicine) classification system
11
Q
IOM (Institute of Medicine) Classification system used for prevention
A
- Universal: Programs which address the general public
- Selective: Programs aimed at populations at risk for future problems
- Indicated: Programs designed for those beginning to show symptoms of a problem
12
Q
Social justice as a central concept to community psychology
A
- Equitable distribution of ressources
- Fairness
- Access
- We want to distribute our ressources well however we currently do not
- Addressed by:
- Attending to and dealing with social processes
- Stopping marginalization and exclusion
13
Q
Emphasis on strengths and competencies as a central concept of community psychology
A
- Competence: Sense of mastery
- With every community, there is also ability
- If we go in and just study what’s bad everyone will be sad, so we have to study their strengths also
- Helps us figure out what supports a community may need
- Assets: Discovering each individual’s strengths
- Victim blaming: We shouldn’t blame the individual for the problem or disorder
14
Q
Social change as a central concept in community psychology
A
- Social change: efforts to shift community values, attitudes, and expectations
- Can include targeting pathogenic systems
- And may well challenge the status quo
15
Q
Action research as a central concept in community psychology
A
- Designed to resolve social problems
- Should be grounded in theory
- Should involve an active partnership between the researcher and community member
16
Q
Interdisciplinary perspective as a central concept in community psychology
A
- The best perspective to have because:
- Complex problems require complex answers,
- Collaboration allows new perspectives,
- Collaboration helps prevent disciplinary
- Collaboration prevents us from thinking that only our problems matter
17
Q
A wicked problem
A
- A problem that is so complex that is is hard to understand the nature of the problem
- Even if you try to launch a solution it may create problems we didn’t even know could happen
- Ex: Team that boards up houses in Detroit just really forces the crack heads to move to different areas
18
Q
Levels of change
A
- First order change: Ameliorative change
- Second order change: Transformative change
- One is not necessarily better than the other
19
Q
First order change
A
- Changing individuals to adapt to a system
- Within group change
- System stays the same
- Ameliorative change
- We see this the most
- Helping the people function in systems that aren’t great
- Ex: Helping first year students learn how to take notes in university
20
Q
Second order change
A
- Change in the system
- Change relationships between groups
- Change in allocation of resources
- Transformative change
- Disturbing the power
- Hard to because the people with the power don’t want to give up the power
- Ex: changing university so students have more power
