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 New Content
The HEAL Lab: Healing Health Inequity Together
Posted in: Healthcare, Marginalized Groups | Tags: Featured ContentPublished in: American Journal of Community PsychologyCritical Conscious-ness Theory and Community Based Participatory Results can help communities address health disparities. The HEAL lab provides a support network and engages diverse stakeholders in critical reflection as they participate in research to advance health equity.
Supporting Community-Based DV Services Through Academic Collaboration
Posted in: Coalition Building, Marginalized Groups | Tags: Featured ContentPublished in: Global Journal of Community Psychology PracticeInterventions to reduce negative effects of domestic violence are highly context dependent. Latina DV survivors face unique socio-cultural barriers when seeking services. Community-based resources can be supported by collaborative academic partnerships to strengthen the evaluation component of the work.
When the Feds Need Help: Community-Based Policing and Deportation
Posted in: Criminal Justice, Immigrant Justice | Tags: Featured ContentWhile there is a long history of cooperation between local police and sheriffs and federal immigration agents in the United States, the issue has more recently become a source of conflict. Local police and sheriffs are increasingly seen as “force multipliers” for the federal government causing some backlash at a time when many are calling […]
Raising Awareness and Getting to Action: Uprooting White Supremacy and Promoting Racial Justice
Posted in: Marginalized Groups | Tags: Featured ContentIn response to the repeated police killings of Black people, including the recent deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and Rayshard Brooks, and the global mobilization demanding structural change to ensure that Black Lives Matter, the Society for Community Research and Action membership pulled together resources to support awareness raising and action for […]
Society for Community Research and Action Statement on Police Brutality
Posted in: Criminal Justice, Marginalized Groups, Public Policy, Violence Prevention | Tags: Featured ContentWe, the Society for Community Research and Action (SCRA), are in solidarity with those calling to move funding out of policing and into systems that facilitate community wellness. For this reason, we take up policing as an institution.
Celebrate and Replicate! Building Community through the New Bank for Community Solutions and Ideas
Posted in: Inspiration | Tags: Featured ContentSubmit your stories of community-building, action, and hope to the The New Bank for Community Solutions!
Featured Research
Addressing the Social Determinants of Health with CBPR
Posted in: Marginalized Groups, Poverty and Socioeconomic Status, Prevention Science | Tags: Featured ResearchPublished in: American Journal of Community PsychologyDifferential access to social, economic, and environmental supports puts communities at risk for disparities in health and well‐being. CBPR is a promising approach to address the social determinants of health.
Community Resilience: More Supports, More Impact
Posted in: Children, Youth and Families, Coalition Building, Marginalized Groups | Tags: Featured ResearchPublished in: The American PsychologistMost adults report at least one ACE and ACEs disproportionally impact marginalized communities. Supporting community resilience helps promote child development within families, peer groups, schools, and communities.
Integrating Youth in Community Based Participatory Research
Posted in: Children, Youth and Families | Tags: Featured ResearchPublished in: Journal of Participatory Research MethodsMeaningfully engaging youth in research, evaluation, and practice is important. We examined the value of Youth GO as an emerging participatory qualitative method to engage youth in collecting and analyzing data.
Juvenile Offenders in Context: How Their Worldviews Impact their Actions
Posted in: Criminal Justice, Marginalized Groups | Tags: Featured ResearchPublished in: American Journal of Community PsychologyJuvenile offending is not simply the outgrowth of “poor choices”. Rather, antisocial behavior may reflect adolescents’ views of unfairness and injustice within the legal system and the world at large.
Using Intersectionality Theory and Microaggression Theory in Research: The Muslimah Project
Posted in: Marginalized Groups, Mental Health | Tags: Featured ResearchPublished in: American Journal of Community PsychologyBoth subtle and overt discrimination negatively impact Muslim women’s mental health. Applying Microaggression and Intersectionality Theories can help untangle the complex experiences of Muslim women so that we can address the negative consequences of discrimination.
CBOs Can Address Health Disparities in LatinX Communities
Posted in: Immigrant Justice, Mental Health | Tags: Featured ResearchPublished in: American Journal of Community PsychologyThe lack of attention to increasing LatinX immigrant health inequities created by system-level factors has created a public mental health crisis that calls for innovative strategies to support immigrant families and the community-based organizations that serve them. It is critical to focus on building capacity within community-based organizations (CBOs) that immigrant families already access.
