What is Community Psychology?
Social justice. Action-oriented research. Global in nature. Influencing public policy. Working for empowerment. Multidisciplinary in focus. Celebrating culture. Preventing harm. Behavior in context. Social action. Supporting community strengths. Reducing oppression. Promoting well-being. Scientific inquiry. Honoring human rights. Respecting diversity.
Community psychology goes beyond an individual focus and integrates social, cultural, economic, political, environmental, and international influences to promote positive change, health, and empowerment at individual and systemic levels.
Featured Research
The Effects of Deportation on Families and Communities
Posted in: Aging, Children, Youth and Families, Criminal Justice, Marginalized Groups, Public Policy | Tags: Featured ResearchPublished in: American Journal of Community PsychologyThe Effects of Deportation on Families and Communities A Policy Statement by the Society for Community Research and Action: Division 27 of the American Psychological Association[1] Prepared by: Regina Day Langhout, University of California at Santa Cruz, Sara L. Buckingham, University of Alaska at Anchorage, Ashmeet Kaur Oberoi, University of Miami, Noé Rubén Chávez, City […]
Sense of Community: Let’s Build it Together!
Posted in: Sense of Community | Tags: Featured ResearchPublished in: American Journal of Community PsychologyImmigration policy is debated around the globe. Xenophobia abounds. Yet, one of every 30 people live outside of their country of birth. Immigrants and longer-term residents often transform their sense of community—their feelings of belonging and mattering to the community, and beliefs that they will meet their needs through the community—in the new communities they […]
Applying the Principles of Community Psychology in Institutions of Higher Education
Posted in: Children, Youth and Families, Education, Marginalized Groups | Tags: Featured Research, ResearchPublished in: Community Practice BulletinThis article seeks to add a deeper understanding of the context that many first-generation minority college students have endured prior to getting to higher education, specifically the disproportionately high number of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and their long-lasting impacts.
People of Color Experience Discrimination Within LGBT Spaces
Posted in: Marginalized Groups, Mental Health, Sense of Community | Tags: Featured Research, ResearchWe examine processes of minority stress and community resilience among racially diverse sexual minority men. Our findings suggest that connection to Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) community plays a more central role in mediating minority stress processes for White sexual minority men than it does for sexual minority men of color.
You Can MAKE Better Mentors
Posted in: Children, Youth and Families, Marginalized Groups | Tags: Featured ResearchMany low-income youth and youth of color experience inequity in schools, neighborhoods and other communities. This may be attributable to adult biases within these settings. These biases may be heightened when the adult and youth do not share similar social identities, such as ethnicity, gender, or socio-economic status. Given the potential influence of adults on […]
How We Can Promote “Citizenship” in Communities
Posted in: Marginalized Groups, Mental Health, Public Policy | Tags: Featured Research, ResearchPublished in: American Journal of Community PsychologyIf we return to the definition of citizenship as a sense of belonging to a group, we gain an understanding of “community” as more broad than simple geographical proximity, membership, or identification with a group.
Featured New Content
Is Community Psychology “Forever Young”? Noting and Addressing the Lack of Community Psychologists in Communities of Aging
Posted in: Aging, History of Community Psychology | Tags: Featured ContentPublished in: American Journal of Community PsychologyBetween the years 2005 to 2050, the global population of older persons (over age 65) is expected to increase 113%. In continents such as Asia and Africa, the increase is expected to exceed 268% and 307%, respectively. Considering women constitute a majority of the aging population, they may be at an even greater disadvantage than […]
Are Current Mentoring Models Bad for Kids’ Health?
Posted in: Blog, Children, Youth and Families | Tags: Featured ContentRecent longitudinal studies show that Black adolescents and adults from low socioeconomic backgrounds who are resilient are also more likely to get physically sick. However, White adolescents and adults from similar backgrounds are immune to this negative outcome. For example, a study of Black, low-income adolescents revealed that those who were resilient (as demonstrated by high aspirations, […]
I Am Not Alone in My Struggle: Importance of Online Communities for Turner Syndrome
Posted in: Inspiration, Self Help | Tags: Featured ContentPublished in: The Community PsychologistKristin M. Schramer and Kathryn D. Lafreniere The growth of online communities, communities in which members communicate primarily through electronic means, has led to interest in their ability to develop a sense of community in their members, often referred to as Sense of Virtual Community (SOVC) (Abfalter, Zanglia, & Mueller, 2012). There is evidence that […]
