Toward community: A third position

This essay addresses the insufficiency of modern science as the solution to the problems of human life. It is a critique of community theory and a constructivist proposal for a synthesis of the individuality and collectivity solutions to the Paradox of the One and the Many—designated as the Third Position. The Third Position is necessary for the postmodern period for there is a need to incorporate the goal of Equality (or Justice) into a paradigm based on Liberty and Fraternity. The Third Position is also called the Just Community. To achieve the development of the new position (paradigm), a location-specific action research center is proposed based on the Woods Hole Marine Biological Laboratory (Kelly, 1970). Two examples of action research are described: aqualitative project to develop community within a parish that has served to advance the theory of the Just Community, and aquantitative project of community-level change-monitoring of social indicators and the use of dynamic modeling as a way to understand and simulate local community processes. The Society for Community Research and Action is urged to take specific actions to explore the development of a Woods Hole community research laboratory.     

Activity settings as the unit of analysis: A theoretical basis for community intervention and development

Theory, methods, and action develop within context, one of which is the intellectual climate of an era. Community psychology is directly and indirectly interactive with many intellectual currents, such as postmodernism, semiotics, hermeneutics, and dialogism. These ideas are discussed as they impact on community psychology, with an emphasis on the reemergence of meaning as a central condition of psychology and community. Meaning is of key importance to the unifying concept in the transactional theoretical model which is presented. How this model might serve as a conceptual framework for an asset approach to community intervention and development is discussed. Increasingly, it is recognized that the development of theory to guide community research and action is necessary to advance intervention and to realize the potential of community psychology. It is argued that community psychology is positioned by concepts and practice squarely at the point of emerging thought, and can make fuondational contributions to general social science. The next article in this special section illustrates concepts of this model in an early education program and the remaining article illustrates the influence of ecocultural factors.     

Empowerment meets narrative: Listening to stories and creating settings

Comments on and summarizes some of the themes of a special issue on empowerment. Extends empowerment theory with the suggestion that both research and practice would benefit from a narrative approach that links process to practice and attends to the voices of the people of interest. Narrative theory and method tends to open the field to a more inclusive attitude as to what counts as data and to cross-disciplinary insights as well as citizen collaboration. Communal narratives are defined at various levels of analysis, including the community, the organizational, and the cultural. A definition of empowerment that includes a concern with resources calls attention to the fact that communal narratives and personal stories are resources. Implications for personal and social change are suggested.     

Developing coherence in community and clinical psychology: the integration of idealism and pragmatism

Illustrations of how ideas from community psychology may be integrated with clinical psychological thinking and practice are described from the perspective of a clinical psychologist working in the NHS. The intentions are to consider socially relevant conceptualizations of the causes of people's well-being and distress, and to develop ways of helping individuals and communities to clarify and address these causes. Incorporating an analysis of social power also necessitates a critical awareness of the limited potency of psychological interventions. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Academic on a mission: Run and run and run

Challenges the distinctions we make between research/scholarship and practice. Recognizes and values the complimentarity of teaching, research, practice, and public policy. Tells how I have tried to approach creating opportunities to integrate those activities in my role as a community psychologist in an academic setting. Describes some of the lessons I have learned from my two decades of practice. This article is a very close approximation to my Distinguished Contribution to Practice in Community Psychology award address at APA in Toronto, August 1996. That talk included numerous overheads, which reason demands I omit. I thank Jim Sorenson and George Albee who, each in their own way, showed me that university professors can be passionate about their work and extend their reach beyond the perimeters of the campus. I thank Heather Barton, Krista Hopkins, Jennifer Heigel, and Anne Salassi for being such good ambassadors and for my most meaningful source of professional satisfaction: turning students on to careers as community psychologists and preventionists. I thank the Virginia prevention community for two decades of working together toward a common mission and the College of William and Mary for supporting my life’s work. Finally I thank John Morgan for his friendship and his affirming introduction, State Michaels for her help with the original talk, and Beverly Peterson for always being there. I am deeply honored.     

The Australian Psychology Workforce 3: A national profile of psychologists in salaried employment or in independent private practice

A detailed analysis of the different sectors of the psychology workforce was conducted as part of the National Psychology Workforce Survey: Independent Private Practice (IPP), Employed in Public Sector (EPuS) and Employed in Private Sector (EPrS). A total of 11,897 psychologists responded to the workforce survey, a response rate of 48%. Of these 8,086 were fully registered and currently working in a psychology role. Sectors were compared on a range of practice characteristics and differences were explored using a series of ANOVAs and post‐hoc analyses. Results of analyses revealed qualitative differences between the three sectors. Strategies for maintaining the employed workforce were also collected and are reported to be as much about increasing work satisfaction and support for professional and development opportunities as about salary.     

Divergence between community psychologists in academic and nonacademic settings: A closer look at the implications

The ecological principle of interdependence has been a guiding theme in our research and conceptualization. For the development of community psychology, academic and applied interest and networks must be integrated in ways which value the views and resources of both groups. This is the focus of Kelly's (1984) remarks. The dynamic interplay of ideas, data, and practices is likely to facilitate the collaboration between researchers and setting inhabitants which Trickett (1984) describes as the distinctive quality of community psychology. Common pathways of information exchange, joint responsibility for training future members of the field, and mutually enhancing role relationships are needed. Current channels of communication provide little ease of access or incentives for participation by psychologists in nonacademic settings. It thus becomes the reponsibility of all concerned community psychologists to use their organizational skills to redress this harmful imbalance (Kelly, 1984). For this to occur, however, we must take the initial steps of frankly recognizing differences in our folkways and organizational constraints, while also emphasizing our common values and assets. The largest threat to the field is external constraints from university and clinical service settings on the work that represents community psychology (Elias et al., 1984). If we are dividedor uninformed in the face of these environmental presses, we will never create the adaptive niche that community psychology needs to survive.     

On the role of theoretical inquiry in psychology: A double-edged sword

Wachtel's article is as relevant today as it was over a quarter century ago, especially as public support for higher education has declined, and increased pressure to obtain external research funding is needed in order to support universities. Although Wachtel's observation that research and grant funding are more likely to be reinforced then theoretical inquiry, there is a serious question regarding whether theory can be effective in advancing the field of psychology and psychotherapy. Some of problems that typically have been associated with theory in our field are discussed, and the argument is made that theoretical inquiry be directed to the formulation of less abstract and more focal principles of human behavior and the therapy change process.     

Integrating Women's Voices and Theory: A Comprehensive Domestic Violence Intervention for Latinas

Using both academic theories and two decades of experience in community, this article presents the work conducted by Caminar Latino (Latino Journey), a comprehensive intervention for Latino families affected by domestic violence. Having developed in both analogous and independent ways from theories in the academic field, Caminar Latino provides a unique opportunity to explore ways in which ecological theory and tenets of feminist therapy can be combined within a social justice framework to address this severe social problem. Of particular relevance to therapists, advocates and others working in this field is the ongoing inclusion of the voices of women participants as a central tenet of the intervention.     

The therapeutic community in the local community: Social networks between therapeutic community and supported housing

In this paper, the authors present a model for therapeutic community programmes for those with severe and enduring mental ill health, based on social networks. These programmes have given birth to a range of therapeutic community which are, in fact, an innovative form of group psychotherapy. These new model do not depend on communal living. Some are groupings of apartments, others day units. Work schemes also feature here. And yet, as the authors outline, various components need to be present if these are to be considered genuine therapeutic communities and not just supported housing schemes. Additionally, a certain kind of training and clinical supervision is needed for the staff.     

Response deprivation and reinforcement in applied settings: A preliminary analysis

First-grade children engaged in seatwork behaviors under reinforcement schedules established according to the Premack Principle and the Response Deprivation Hypothesis. Across two experiments, schedules were presented to the children in a counter-balanced fashion which fulfilled the conditions of one, both, or neither of the hypotheses. Duration of on-task math and coloring in Experiment 1 and on-task math and reading in Experiment 2 were the dependent variables. A modified ABA-type withdrawal design, including a condition to control for the noncontingent effects of a schedule, indicated an increase of on-task instrumental responding only in those schedules where the condition of response deprivation was present but not where it was absent, regardless of the probability differential between the instrumental and contingent responses. These results were consistent with laboratory findings supporting the necessity of response deprivation for producing the reinforcement effect in single response, instrumental schedules. However, the results of the control procedure were equivocal so the contribution of the contingent relationship between the responses to the increases in instrumental behavior could not be determined. Nevertheless, these results provided tentative support for the Response Deprivation Hypothesis as a new approach to establishing reinforcement schedules while indicating the need for further research in this area. The possible advantages of this technique for applied use were identified and discussed.     

The role of primary prevention in mental health services: A review and critique

Community psychology in the West has had a growing impact on mental health service provision. One facet of this development has been the advocacy of an increased focus on the primary prevention of mental illness. This paper reviews both theoretical and practical work in this area in order to assess the current role and relevance of primary preventive interventions. There is a discussion of primary prevention's historical and theoretical contexts, of its conceptualisations and definitions, of criticisms of its relevance and efficacy, and of examples of its practice. It is argued that primary prevention is inappropriately marginalised in current service provision and that there is a need to engage in the long-term planning and evaluation of primary preventive interventions in order to facilitate their fuller incorporation into national and local policies on mental health.     

An ecological assessment of community-based interventions for prevention and health promotion: Approaches to measuring community coalitions

Presented an ecological assessment of a community coalition to prevent alcohol, tobacco, and other drug abuse, and related risks. Ecological assessment is defined as occurring at multiple social levels and along a continuum of stages of coalition readiness. The assessment is aided by the triangulation, or combining of assessment methods and strategies. Measures used to assess the coalition's formation, implementation of community initiatives, and production of community impacts are described, along with the triangulation strategies used to enhance the assessment findings. We thank our evaluation team members including Erica Adams, Simon Choi, Cindy Crusto, Katie Davino, David delaCruz, Pamela Goodman, Maury Nation, and Diana Seybolt. We also thank the members of the community coalitions for substance abuse prevention and especially the project directors: James Bown, Dian Crain, Johneta Davis, Kelli Kenninson, Paul Pittman, Greg Sparkman, Sheryl Taylor, and Kenneth Wright.     

Psychology and the End of History: A Critique and a Proposal for the Psychology of Social Categorization

This paper suggests that self-categories provide the basis for political action, that those who wish to organize political activity do so through the ways in which they construct self-categories, and that political domination may be achieved through reifying social categories and therefore denying alternative ways of social being. Hence, the way in which social psychology approaches the matter of self-categorization provides a touchstone for its politics. To the extent that we too take categories for granted, we are in danger of supporting conservative and undemocratic politics. The only way to eschew tendencies toward reification within social psychology is to add a historical dimension to our own analysis of self-categorical processes.     

Skills for Social and Academic Success: A School-Based Intervention for Social Anxiety Disorder in Adolescents

This paper describes Skills for Academic and Social Success (SASS), a cognitive–behavioral, school-based intervention for adolescents with social anxiety disorder. Clinic-based treatment studies for socially anxious youth are reviewed, and a strong rationale for transporting empirically-based interventions into schools, such as SASS, is provided. The SASS program consists of 12, 40-min group sessions that emphasize social skills and in-vivo exposure. In addition to group sessions, students are seen individually at least twice and participate in 4 weekend social events with prosocial peers from their high schools. Meetings with teachers provide information about social anxiety and facilitate classroom exposures for socially anxious participants. Parents attend 2 psychoeducational meetings about social anxiety, its treatment, and approaches for managing their childs anxiety. Initial findings regarding the programs effectiveness are presented. We conclude by discussing the challenges involved in implementing treatment protocols in schools and provide suggestions to address these issues.     

Sense of community and life satisfaction: investigation in three different territorial contexts

The aim of this study was to investigate relations between sense of community, life satisfaction, self-esteem, perceived social support and satisfaction with community services in three territorial communities of different sizes. Further, the relations between sense of community and socio-demographic variables (gender, age, marital status, education, children, working in one's own community, owning one's home and group participation) were also studied. The Italian version of the Sense of Community Scale, Rosenberg's Self-esteem Scale, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, a scale on Satisfaction with Community Services and a questionnaire were administered to 336 subjects; selection was made in the three communities from 20–60 year-old individuals. Results confirm that sense of community and life satisfaction are higher in the town than in the larger communities; also, sense of community relates to life satisfaction only in the town and the small city. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Social representations of health and illness: the case of the Chinese community in England

This paper reports results from a qualitative study on social representations of health and illness among the Chinese community in England. It is assumed that representations of health and illness are grounded in cultural frameworks and are constructed through communication, social interaction and the practices of daily life. Our findings show that in spite of differences related to age and degrees of acculturation, Chinese people in England share a common representational system with respect to health and illness. This system is based on the traditional notions of “balance” and “harmony” between the interdependent forces of Yin and Yang. Health results from balance, whereas illness is brought about by disequilibrium. It is through these traditional Chinese concepts that Western biomedical knowledge is incorporated, producing a mixed representational field where Chinese and Western knowledge co‐exist. This representational field is transmitted through the most fundamental dimensions of culture: food, language and kinship relations. We conclude by showing that social representations of health and illness are inseparable from the struggles over identity experienced by the Chinese people in England. Copyright © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Defining and Measuring Mechanisms of Change in Psychological Therapies: The Path Not Taken

Metcalf and Dimidjian (this issue) have provided an important review of the current evidence base for mindfulness‐based cognitive therapy (MBCT) and presented a helpful summary of the proposed mechanisms of change. It is necessary to engage in a continuous dialogue regarding the evidence base for change mechanisms, and the article by Metcalf and Dimidjian highlights an important barrier of concern to the field of treatment outcome research. The present commentary aims to expand the discussion regarding the definition, measurement, and evaluation of “mechanisms of change.” Using MBCT as an example, this commentary addresses the ambiguity surrounding the definition and operationalisation of these mechanisms in research on psychological therapies and how the method of measurement may impact the results obtained in clinical trials. It is argued that a potentially fruitful avenue of future research would involve investigation of techniques, important client‐therapeutic processes, and mechanisms in a single study in order to comprehensively evaluate how change occurs.     

A role for clinical psychology in health care and policy concerning the physical environment

Some persons adversely react to specific environments, while others are impervious or actually thrive. Medical attention often overlooks such sensitivities to the physical environment. Such sensitivities, including phobias and seasonal affectivity, fall within clinical psychology's purview. A theoretical/clinical approach called the Synchronous Systems Model, which defines and uses individual differences in people and in settings, could serve medical health care and policy. When specific people are matched appropriately with specific treatments within the most propitious settings, cost effectiveness and medical efficacy rise. Such documented accountability could make clinical psychologists central to triage of medical services as well as health care policy in these days of the shrinking health care dollar. The Synchronous Systems Model provides theory, supportive data, and clinical assessment devices to strengthen clinical psychology's role in medical settings.     

Identity Processes in Collective Action Participation: Farmers' Identity and Farmers' Protest in the Netherlands and Spain

This study tested the assumption that a sense of collective identity stimulates participation in collective action. Contextual circumstances supposedly make a collective identity more salient and compel people to act as members of the group; protest participation is more likely among people with a strong collective identity. Group identification and participation in identity organizations were used as indicators of collective identity in a study of 248 farmers from Galicia (Spain) and 167 farmers from the Netherlands. The farmers were interviewed three times at intervals of 1 year. The longitudinal design also allowed a test of causality. A sense of collective identity appeared to stimulate preparedness to take part in farmers' protest. Action preparedness leads to action participation, which in turn appears to foster collective identity.