Chapter 2

Learning Objectives 

After reading this chapter, one should be able to answer the following questions: 

1. What social movements in the twenty first century influenced the evolution of community psychology?   
2. How does empowerment influence community psychology thinking?  
3. What does a strength focus do to our conceptions of communities? 
4. What are some ways in which we might consider diversity?  
5. How have global perspectives influenced community psychology?  

Test your knowledge of this chapter with this quiz!  

Question 1

When psychologists speak of “agency” they are talking about

Access to others

Hiring consultants to aid in the organization’s structure

Feeling able to influence one’s own life

All of the above

None

Question 2

Among other things, Maria Jahoda is known for her writings on:

Empowerment

Positive mental health

Arguing against psychopathology

Community epidemiology

None

Question 3

Which of the following is not part of the ADDRESSING system?

Anhedonia

Sexual orientation

Indigenous heritage

Religion

None

Question 4

The topic of social justice appeared in the American Journal of Community Psychology since:

It’s very beginning

the 1980s

the beginning of the 2000s

the 1990s

None

Question 5

Many sex educators argue that sex education should be taught in the elementary schools to all students. This approach to AIDS reduction is an example of:

universal prevention

secondary prevention

targeted prevention

milestone prevention

None

Question 6

It has been argued that the study of ethnic minority groups in a community

… is just good science

… is merely a political act with no significant relevance to understanding communities

… should be limited to those areas where ethnic minorities are a significant part of the community

both b and c

None

Question 7

Liberation psychology is attributed to what group?

Indigenous groups in Asia

Latin American practitioners

Psychoanalysts

Critical psychologists in Europe

None

Question 8

Decolonial and Anticolonial psychology seeks to:

Buy indigenous lands back from the oppressors

Strengthen our Western assumptions of knowledge

Replace the dominant Eurocentric model of the world with one that recognizes and respects indigenous perspectives

Liberate colonies and territories from their European rulers

None

Question 9

Community psychology has advocated social change to deal with problems. Among the advice given to accomplish this are the following, with one exception. What has NOT been advised?

Identify the holders of power in the situation

Build coalitions

Engage diverse perspectives

Don’t think small, go for the big win

None

Question 10

Mattering is…

when a setting values an individual

when an individual values a setting

predictive of well-being for individuals

All of the above

None

Time’s up

Study Questions 

1. Describe how a strength and competency-based approach to a community issue. 
2. Discuss how social justice might influence discussions of wages and housing. 
3. What might an awareness of cultural guidelines do for people interacting across cultures?  Might these apply for travelers to foreign countries? 
4. How might critical, liberation or decolonial psychology influence a community intervention program?   

Additional Resources 

• Black Lives Matter:  
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Lives_Matter 
  • https://www.bbc.com/news/explainers-53337780 
• COVID: https://www.cdc.gov/museum/timeline/covid19.html  
• Occupy Wall Street: https://time.com/6117696/occupy-wall-street-10-years-later/  
• Multicultural Guidelines: An Ecological Approach to Context, Identity, and Intersectionality, 2017, Adopted by the APA Council of Representatives, August 2017: https://www.apa.org/about/policy/multicultural-guidelines