What is Community Psychology?

“Community psychology is a branch of psychology focused on understanding individuals within their social, cultural, and environmental contexts, emphasizing the importance of community dynamics in mental health and well-being. It emerged in the 1960s alongside the community mental health movement, and its primary goal is to develop, implement, and evaluate programs that are culturally relevant and preventive in nature. Community psychologists prioritize the strengths and competencies of individuals and communities, advocating for diverse perspectives and promoting the acceptance of differences.” (Bailey, 2024).

Community psychology | Psychology | Research Starters | EBSCO Research

“Community Psychology (CP) praxis is a collective action, capacity building process in which a community psychologist engages a community area, organization, or social group, in an effort to collectively remove barriers to lateral interdependence, autonomy, and self-determination. This work takes place both within groups suffering from oppressive barriers to wellness and those responsible for setting up or maintaining those barriers. Community mobilization, planning, decision-making, and implementation are developed through the collection of communally constructed understandings and shared praxis. This work requires the community psychologist deeply (encouraging outside critique) aimed at developing their most optimal role, based on clarity of intent, purpose, positionality, power, and relationality.” (Jiménez et al., 2023)

Jiménez, T. R., Mingo, E., Viola, J., Olson, B., & Balthazar, C. (2023). Foundations for Relational Ethics: Introducing a Continuum of Community Psychology Praxis. Global Journal of Community Psychology Practice, 14(1). https://doi.org/10.17161/gjcpp.v14i1.20057

Community Psychology focuses on the multiple systems that affect individuals, ranging from those with direct influence on the personal (microsystems) to those with broader societal and cultural influences (macrosystems) (Kloos et al., 2021). Interventions in community psychology include prevention, education, consultation, organizing, community-based research, and transformative participatory research methods. Kloos et al. (2020) identified eight core values in community psychology. They define values as “deeply held ideals about what is moral, right, or good” (p. 22), that “they are social; we develop values through experiences with others” (p. 23), and these values help to embody “research and action” (p. 23). The eight core values of community psychology include social justice, respect for human diversity, sense of community, collective wellness, empowerment and citizen participation, collaboration, empirical grounding, and a multilevel, strengths-based perspective.

Kloos, B., Hill, J., Thomas, E., Case, A. D., Scott, V. C., Wandersman, A. (2021). Community Psychology Linking Individuals and Communities (Fourth). America Psychological Association.

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