Principles of Community Psych

Prevention Primary, secondary, tertiary Boulder Model’s Flaw George Albee

Emphasis on Strengths and Competencies Peter Bensonhttp

://www.search-institute.org/remembering-peter-benson

Principles of Community Psych

Importance of Ecological Perspective

Respect for Diversity

Empowerment The process of enhancing the possibility that people

can more actively control their own lives

Action Research Evaluation which prevention efforts work best for

whom, when, and why

Principles of Community Psych

Social Change Unplanned Social Change Planned Social Change

MENTORING RESEARCH Programs get larger effects when characterized

by careful recruitment training monitoring multi-modal matching on interest

EVALUATION FINDINGS AND PUBLIC INTEREST IN MENTORING LET TO PROGRAMS PUTTING MORE EMPHASIS ON GROWTH THAN ON QUALITY

Types of Social Change Unplanned

Planned Change agent Participatory/Collaborative

rules for radicals

Creating and Sustaining Social Change

Citizen Participation The involvement in any organized activity in which

the indiviaul partipates without pay in order to achive a common goal (e.g., grass roots activism) Self-Help Groups Social Support

Examples of CP Voting

Petition

Donating money/time

Reading articles on needs/change

Boycotting

Joining self-help group

Participating in marches

Leading grass-roots group

Doing volunteer work

Fundraising drives

Offering consulting

Serviing an offcie or supporting a candidate

Tea Party/Wall Street Protests

Both are loosely organizaed

Both express anger toward groups in power

Both are calling for large-scale, complicated changes

Ecological Context

How has this college environment affected you

How well do you know your classmates

How well do you know the faculty

Can you identify A place where you like to socialize A quiet place to study A person you would seek help from Access to parking

What Changes would you suggest to improve it

Behavior Settings (Barker)

People in a setting are largely interchangeable, the same patterns of behavior occur irrespective

Settings have rules that maintain the standing behavior pattern

Underpopulated Settings

Four ecological principals (James Kelly)

Interdependence

Cycling of Resources

Adaptation

Succession

Adapted concepts for the biological field of ecology

Interdependence--a system has multiple related parts; change in one affects the others

Cycling of resources-any system can be understood byexamining how resources are dfined, used, created, conserved, and transformed. The interdependence can be understood by charting the cycling

Adaptation Individuals cope with the constraints or demands of an environment

using resources available there

Successsion Ecologies change over time, and understanding the other 3 priciples

must be understood in terms of that pattern of change.

Kelly

Social Climate (Rudolf Moos)

Developed Social Climate Scales (CES, FES)

Tap Dimensions of the social environment Relationships Personal Development Systems Maintenance and Change Additional qualities

Physical features Organizational policies and norms Suprapersonal (aggregate)

Social Regularities (Seidman)

Patterns of behavior that reveal roles and power in relationships

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSJ4IDOcT-k&feature=related

Environmental Psychology

Examines the influence of physical characteriscs of a setting on behavior.

Arose about the same time as CP

Foundsrs were primarily social psychologists interested in the physical env. And behavior Enviornmental Stressors Environmental Design

Understanding Community

What are the important communities in your life? Your extended family A campus organization A workplace An academic program A block, neighborhood, or town A religious congregation

Identify a time in your life when you felt you were excluded or treated unjustly by a community How did it happen How did/does it affect you

Psychological Sense of Community

A shared emotional bond, a shared identity, and mutal trust, caring and commitment

Sarason defined it as A feeling that members have of belonging, that

members matter to one another and to the group, and a sharied belife that members needs will be met through their commitment to be together

Elements of the PSC

Membership Boundaries Common symbols Emotional safety Personal investment Sense of belonging

Influence

Integration and Fulfillment of Needs

Shared Emotional Connection Celebrations, rituals, etc.

Narratives and PSC

Dominant Cultural Narratives

Community Narratives

Personal Stories

Putnam

In Bowling Alone (2000:288-290), Putnam identified four of the most important outcomes associated with dense, i.e., high stocks, of social capitol:

Allows citizens to resolve collective problems more easily…via increased cooperation

“greases” the wheels that allow communities to advance smoothly..via increased levels of trust and solidarity

Widens the collective awareness of the many ways in which our fates linked

Function as conduits for the flow of information that facilitates the achievement of individual and collective goals

Social vs. Other Types of Capital

Basically, four types of “capital” are to be found in society:

Physical capital: Refers to physical objects (e.g., plants, machinery, other equipment)

Financial capital: Refers to money and monetary instruments (e.g., stocks, bonds)

Human capital: Refers to properties of individuals--knowledge and skills--that are derived from

education, training and experience

Social capital: Refers to connections among people—social networks and the norms of

reciprocity and trustworthiness that arise from them The norms may be as simple as the norm of reciprocity between two friends or

complex and elaborately articulated doctrines such as Islam, Christianity or Confucianism

A society of many virtuous but isolated individuals is not necessarily rich in social capital (Putnam, 2000:19)

Anne Brodsky

Negative Psychological sense of community

Apathy about communities

Types of Communities

Locality-based Community

Relational Community

How spiritual communities improve in community life

Find meaning

Provide a sense of community Foster mutual influence Foster emotinal bonds

Provide opporutnies for community service

Especially valuable for oppressed

Challenge mainstream cultural forces Possible negative

Albee Equation

Stress + physical vulnerability

-----------------------------------------

Coping skills + support + self-esteem

WHAT IS STRESS? Stress is your mind and body’s

response or reaction to a real or imagined threat, event or change.

The threat, event or change are commonly called stressors. Stressors can be internal (thoughts, beliefs, attitudes or external (loss, tragedy, change).

Lazarus and Folkman’s Theory

Physiological component: Arousal, hormone secretion.

Emotional Component: Anxiety, fear, grief, resentment, excitement (if stress is from challenge).

Behavioral Component: Coping strategies (both behavioral and mental)—problem focused and/or emotion-focused.

The level of stress we experience depends mainly on the adequacy of our resources for coping and how much they will be drained by the stressful situation.

The Stress Response

EUSTRESS

Eustress or positive stress occurs when your level of stress is high enough to motivate you to move into action to get things accomplished.

DISTRESS Distress or negative stress occurs

when your level of stress is either too high or too low and your body and/or mind begin to respond negatively to the stressors.

INTERPRETING YOUR SCORE

Less than 150 points : relatively low stress level in

relation to life events

150 - 300 points : borderline range

Greater than 300 points : high stress in relation to life

events

Note: From Girdano, D.A., Everly, G. S., Jr., & Dusek, D. E. (1990). Controlling stress and tension (3rd edition), ENnglewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Stressors Daily Hassles Life Transitions Ambient/Chronic Stressors Vicious Spirals

Stressors in Community Psych. Research Homelessness School Transitions Natural Disasters

Lazarus and Folkman’s Theory

Stressor

Primary Appraisal: Is Stressor Negative?

Can be negative if it involves harm or loss, threat, or challenge (chance to grow).

Secondary Appraisal: Can I Control the Situation?

If coping resources are adequate, then consider options: problem-focused or emotion-focused coping strategies.

Yes No

No Stress

Appraisal

Primary Appraisal-estimation of strength or intensity of stressor

Secondary-estimation of resources and coping options for responding BOTH are affected by personality factors

Locus of control

Reappraisal Reframing

Appraisal Matters more when resources are ample and threats are moderate Matters less when major stressor, and similarly appraised by man

Stress as

A physiological fight or flight response

A stressor (life event)

An imbalance of demands vs. resources

Ways of thinking about stress

Fight or flight—physiological response

Life events—something that happens to you

Life Events measures

Idea was to identify objective stress

42 events given various weightings Divorce of spouse 100 Divorce 73 Wife begins or stops work 26 Foerclosure of mortgage or loan 30 Vacation 12

Stress as an imbalance: when demands exceed resources

Characteristics of the person that make a difference

Priorities and goals

Values

Beliefs

Developmental history

Psychological, physical, and social resources for coping

Cognitive theory of stress

Key concepts Stress is contextual, it ivolves the person in a

particular environment or situation Stress is a dynamic process The process is influenced by

COGNITIVE APPRAISAL COPING

(Lazarus and Folkman)

Relational definition of stress

A situation is stress when You appraise it as a harm, threat, or challenge It is personally meaningful—it matters to you It taxes or exceeds your resources for coping, it is

not easy to deal with

Cognitive appraisal of stress

Cognitive appraisal

What’s happening, am I ok

What can I do

Does it matter (this is what makes the difference!)

Appraisals are tied to emotion

HARM OR LOSSS: Something>>>>>anger, sadness, guilt bad has happened

THREAT: Something bad >>>>>Worry, fear, anxiety

CHALLENGE: There’s an opportunity for mastery or gain but risk is involved>>>>excitement, eagerness, some anxiety

Stress in our lives

Everywhere

Varies in frequency

Varies in intensity

Varies in duration

SO, What is a “normal” level of stress

Stress? How is it managed

Coping enters the pictures

Coping refers to the thoughts and action that people use to manage demands that are appraised as stressful Coping changes as a situation unfolds Coping is multi-dimenstional

Emotion focused coping: Regulates distress emotions

Distancing (distracting yourself; putting problems out of your mind)

Humor

Seeking emotional support

Escape-avoidance (day dreaming, eating, using drugs)

Problem-focused oping: Manages problems causing distress

Instrumental coping

Problem-solving Logical linear

Information-gathering

Two major categories of coping:

Four general principles of effective coping

Focus on specific situation rather than total stressful context

Ask what made it stressful

Distinguish changeable and unchangeable aspects of situation

Fit the coping to the situation

Focus on a specific recent event that was stressful

Global situation An elderly parent or grandparent requires caregiving

Specific situation He forgot to take his meds on Wed. This matters to me!

#2 What made this stressful?

Danger to her health if she doesn’t take her meds

This could be the beginning of serious cognitive decline

How will I manage to care for him Worry, fear, anxiety!

#3 Identify what aspects of problems you can manage

What can be managed??

What has to be accepted???

Matching the coping to the situation

Controllable aspects Problem focused coping, gather information, select

strategy

Aspects that have to accepted Emotion focused coping “do relaxation exercises, seek

emotional support

Positive emotion and the stress process

Studies show that positive mood predicts longevity

Two years study of 2282 Mexican Americans aged 65-99 Direct rel. between positive affect at baseline and survival.

“Our results support the concept that positive emotions is diff. from absence of negative. It protects against declines in old age”

Nun Study Hand written autobiographies of 180 catholic nuns Scored for emotion

Negative emotions did not predict survival Positive emotions DID

Implications

Not PollyAnna

Not denial

Third form of coping Meaning-focused coping (generate positive emtions) Relinquish untenable goals Substitute new goals that are realistic and meaningful

Helps sustain a sense of control, purpose, and optimism Taking an ordinary event and infusing it with meaning Focus on what really matters (rearrange priorities)

Take a moment

Reflect on the last time in the past 2 days when you felt gratitude pleasure or some positive emotion

Think about what happened, who was there, what was happening

Share with a neighbor

What does thinking about the event do to your mood?

sometimes you can go too far!

GET SPIRITUAL

12. Meditate 13. Pray 14. Remember your purpose 15. Be Positive USE YOUR BODY AND MIND TOGETHER DEVELOP NEW SKILLS 21. Prioritize daily tasks 22. Learn something 23. Practice a hobby

Social Support

Generalized--ongoing support

Specific Support Encouragement Informational Tangible

Optimal Matching Emotional--uncontrollable Encouragement--job loss, work stress Trangible--financial strain

Some require multiple types

Coping Outcomes

Psychological or physical disorders

Thriving Going beyond previous levels

Resilience Maintaining or returning to previous level

Wellness The experience of positive outcomes (life

satisfaction, job satisfacation,

self esteem, academic achievement

Generalized and specific support

Generalized—relationships sustained over time Not tailored to one specific stressor Most clearly measured in term of perceived support

Specific—pertaining to a specific stressor Could include emotional encouragement, information

or advice, or tangible assistance (loaning money)

Social Support

We had another bad week with David. Yesterday was a horrible day. He could hardly talk, swallow or walk. He was drooling heavily. He couldn't be left alone, even for a second. Of course, Doug was away in Europe all week, but my family was here and at the hospital with us, keeping us company and helping me cope.

Again, thank you all for your thoughts and prayers. We definitely could not be getting through this without all of you!

Social Support

Sources of support

Relationships as stressors

Social Networks Dimensionality

Co-worker also a friend Jim and Pam Density

friends in network are friends with each other Reciprocity

The relationship context of support

Natural helpers, mentors

Relationships as stressors

Families and contexts Greater commitment, obligation Gender differences in helping styles

Mutual Help Groups

Voluntary associations of people who share some status that results in difficulties with which the group tries to deal Focal concern Peer Reciprocity Community narrative that embodies the experience

Online mutual help

Spirituality and Religion

Perhaps most useful at limits of resources and ability to cope

Can help make sense of the “incomprehensible, unfathomable, uncontrollable” (Pargament)

Personal Meaning, coping

Social Membership and support within a

congregation/community

5 concepts

Risk Additive/multiplicative

Protection Resilience Strengths

Assets

Thriving-survival, recovery, thriving, transforming one’s priorities, sense of self, and life roles

Prevention programs: do they work?

Durlak and Wells (1977) used meta-analysis to examine 177 primary prevention programs Primary P: 59 to 82% of paricipants surpass the

average perf. of control group Secondary P: 70% better

Cog. Beh. Approaches most effecitve Most effects for children 3-7

Prevention policy

Serving as congressional staff member or with legislative or excecutive branches of government

Research, writing, and giving testimoney regarding effective prevention/promotion interventions

Consulting with human service agencies

Staff positions in Advocacy organizations

Implementation

Very little consistency

Action research: putting theories and methods into practice, evaluating their impact using the results to refine future theory, method, and practice

Involves ongoing cycles of program analysis, innovation (intervention) design, field trials, and dissemination

The central question: How does the program operate when carried out by agents other than the developers. 4 Stages Experimental Technological Diffusional Widespread implementation

Characteristics of Prevention Innovations

Operator dependant

Context Dependent

Fragile, difficult to specify

Core (crucial) vs. adaptive components

Challenging (small wins-Weick) build a record of low-cost,opportunistic successes, which keep the

activists motivated and donot alarm any opposition."Big Win" strategies are very, very dangerous, because they consumetoo many resources, mobilize an opposition, and when they fail, theycompletely demoralize the activists.

Longitudinal Must become part of that history and culture, not dependent on a

charismatic leader

Enduring implementation

Carry out environmental reconnaissance

Ensure strong agreement among stakeholders

Ensure connection to core mission of host setting

Consider a coalition with related local settings

Develop strong, clear leadership

Describe in simple terms

Identify core elements and implement faithfull

Measure program implementation and goal attainment

Search for unintended effects

Plan for institutionalization

Establish external linkages with similar programs in other settings

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Close Relationships Help: Benefits of Marriage

Life expectancy Never married people have a lower life expectancy than

those who are married.

Other benefits Better health Higher income

High rates of poverty of single women and the elderly is in part due to them being single.