Human and Organizational Development

This study reports data from a mapping analysis designed to assess the extent to which liquor outlets concentrate in certain neighborhoods within one economically disadvantaged midsized city in New Jersey. Four neighborhoods, which occupy one-quarter of the residential land mass of the city and which are home to one-quarter of its population, were found to contain over half of its retail liquor outlets. Three of these neighborhoods are very poor and have large minority populations. The neighborhood with the highest concentration of outlets, however, has one of the lowest levels of poverty in the city and is ethnically quite diverse.

The Sociopolitical Control Scale (SPCS) is a widely used measure of the intrapersonal component of psychological empowerment. Confirmatory factor analyses (CFA) were conducted with data from two samples to test the hypothesized structure of the SPCS, the potential effects of method bias on the measure’s psychometric properties, and whether a revised version of the scale (SPCS-R) yielded improved model fit. Sample 1 included 316 randomly selected community residents of the Midwestern United States. Sample 2 included 750 community residents of the Northeastern U.S. Results indicated that method bias from the use of negatively worded items had a significant effect on the factor structure of the SPCS. CFA of the SPCS-R, in which negatively worded items were rephrased so that all statements were positively worded, supported the measure’s hypothesized two-factor structure (i.e., leadership competence and policy control). Subscales of the SPCS-R were found reliable and related in expected ways with measures of community involvement. Implications of the study for empowerment-based research and practice are described, and strategies to further develop the SPCS are discussed.

Instability in the factor structure of the Sense of Community Index (SCI) was tested as a methodological artifact. Confirmatory factor analyses, tested with two data sets, supported neither the proposed one-factor nor the four-factor (needs fulfillment, group membership, influence, and emotional connection) SCI. Results demonstrated that the SCI was best described by four factors in combination with two method factors (i.e., one factor including only positively worded items and another including only negatively worded items). Analyses comparing SCI and method factors showed that positively and negatively worded items correlated differently with measures of citizen participation, psychological empowerment, and health-related quality of life. Results indicate that the SCI should be revised to exclude negatively worded items and new positively worded items should be developed and tested. The effects of method variance and alternative solutions to the psychometric issues in the SCI are discussed. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

s A framework for measuring psychological sense of community for community organizations was presented, and an instrument to measure community organization sense of community was developed. The framework consisted of four components: Relationship to the Organization, Organization as Mediator, Influence of the Community Organization, and Bond to the Community. Two studies examined the dimensionality, reliability, and validity of the instrument. Study 1 (n ϭ 218) was conducted with participants from three community organizations, and it identified four factors, matching the framework, with alpha coefficients from .61 to .85. Study 2 (n ϭ 1,676) was conducted with participants from five community organizations. Study 2 participants were 48% African American, 42% White, 6% Latino/Hispanic, and 3% Other. Also for the Study 2 sample, 69% were female; 31% were male. Study 2 confirmed three factors for the Community Organization Sense of Community scale (COSOC): Relationship to the Organization, Organization as Mediator, Bond to the Community; alpha coefficients ranged from .82 to .87. In three subsamples of Study 2, convergent validity of the instrument was explored by correlating total COSOC scores and subscale scores with two other measures of sense of community, political participation, community involvement, community organization involvement, and perceived safety. The patterns of correlation among the variables indicated, with one exception: strong support for

Analyzed empirical articles (N = 235) in the American Journal of Community Psychology and the Journal of Community Psychology for their methodological structure and contextual influences from [1984][1985][1986][1987][1988]. The study focused upon types of research designs, sampling procedures, designs for measurement, dependent variables, characteristics of research participants, author characteristics, and topic areas among other indicators. Analyses were similar to so that changes over time couM be examined. Findings relative to include greater numbers of field studies, more correlational approaches, a shift away from research topics on mental health services and programs in favor of studies focused on specific problem areas, and populations drawn increasingly from community settings. Results suggest changes in social context and methodological paradigms influence the conduct of empirical research. Additionally, changes in our research base may reflect changes in the field's understanding of the kinds of research it shouM be pursuing.

An important contribution to empowerment theory and community psychology practice can be made by examining how the concept of social power is developed and manifested in the context of community organizing. Theory and practice may be further informed through an ecological analysis of organizing processes and interventions. Lessons from a national community organizing network highlight the relationship between empowerment and power through a set of organizing principles and a cycle of organizing activity. Perhaps most important is the understanding that a reciprocal relationship exists between development of power for community organizations and individual empowerment for organization members. Implications for empowerment theory in the community organizing domain are provided in a matrix adapted from Zimmerman's description of empowerment processes and outcomes at multiple levels of analysis.

The paper reports a study of participatory experiences among members of power-based community organizations. A path model of psychological empowerment was tested. Perceived relational characteristics of the community organization were hypothesized as exogenous to participation, perceived organizational power and psychological empowerment. An alternative model was reproduced with the strongest relationships between perceived organizational intimacy and psychological empowerment and an inverse relationship between perceived organizational regulation and perceptions of organizational power.

Concepts and research from community psychology can inform community development practice by reframing social capital theory. Social capital (SC) is generally defined and measured at the interpersonal, community, institutional, or societal levels in terms of networks (bridging) and norms of reciprocity and trust (bonding) within those networks. SC should be analyzed in a multi-level ecological framework in terms of both individual psychological and behavioral conceptions (sense of community, collective efficacy-or empowerment, neighboring, and citizen participation) and institutional and community network-level conceptions. Excessive concern for social cohesion undermines the ability to confront or engage in necessary conflict, and thus, it dis-empowers the community. Instead of emphasizing social cohesion, "network-bridging" opportunities to increase power, access, and learning should be emphasized. Institutional and community network analysis shows how SC operates at those levels and where to target service resources and develop mediating structures. Psychological and behavioral factors point to factors that motivate individuals to engage in building SC and methods to maintain and improve that engagement.

The paper reports a study of participatory experiences among members of power-based community organizations. A path model of psychological empowerment was tested. Perceived relational characteristics of the community organization were hypothesized as exogenous to participation, perceived organizational power and psychological empowerment. An alternative model was reproduced with the strongest relationships between perceived organizational intimacy and psychological empowerment and an inverse relationship between perceived organizational regulation and perceptions of organizational power.

This study explored relationships between race, citizen participation, and three dimensions of cognitive empowerment: understandings of power through relationships, political functioning, and shaping ideology. Results revealed that, unlike emotional empowerment, cognitive empowerment was not directly related to citizen participation, and effects of participation on cognitive empowerment did not differ for African Americans and Caucasians. Importantly, a main effect of race on cognitive empowerment was found which showed that, accross levels of participation, African Americans had greater understandings of power through relationships and shaping ideology than Caucasians. Implications for empowerment theory and practice are discussed. Empowerment theory has been widely used to inform interventions targeting health promotion at the individual, organizational, and community levels. It has formed the basis of interventions aimed at aiding minority groups (

The Community Organization Sense of Community Scale (COSOC) is a frequently used or cited measure of the construct in community psychology and other disciplines, despite a lack of confirmation of its underlying 4-factor framework. Two studies were conducted to test the hypothesized structure of the COSOC, the potential effects of method bias on psychometric properties, and whether a revised measure (COSOC-R) yielded improved model-to-data fit. Study 1 included year 2002 data from two samples: (a) randomly selected community residents (n=724) of five cities in the United States, and (b) randomly selected organizational members (n=508) of community-organizing initiatives in the same five US cities. Study 2 included year 2006 data from organizational members (n=151) of community-based prevention partnerships located in the midwestern United States. Results from both samples in Study 1 confirmed that method bias from the mixed use of positively and negatively worded items had a detrimental effect on the factor structure of the original COSOC. Results of Study 2 strongly supported the hypothesized 4-factor structure of the COSOC-R (i.e., relationship to organization, organization as mediator, influence of the organization, and bond to community). Study 2 results also showed that the overall COSOC-R and its subscales were reliable and related in expected ways with psychological empowerment, community participation, and organizational involvement. Implications of the study and strategies to further develop the COSOC are discussed. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

First-order and second-order models of sense of community (SOC) were tested using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) of data gathered from a random sample of community residents (n=293) located in the midwestern United States. An 8-item Brief Sense of Community Scale (BSCS) was developed to represent the SOC dimensions of needs fulfillment, group membership, influence, and shared emotional connection. The CFA results for the BSCS supported both the scale's hypothesized first-order and second-order factor structure. The overall BSCS scale and its subscales were also found to be correlated as expected with community participation, psychological empowerment, mental health, and depression. Findings provide empirical support for the BSCS and its underlying multidimensional theory of SOC. Implications of the study are described and directions for future research discussed. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Empowerment theory represents an expansive view of individual and collective behavior that includes the active participation of individuals and groups in altering and shaping the socioenvironmental context. Critical to health educators are local interventions that yield participation of community members and empowerment for participants. The concept of social cohesion embraces participation but expands this behavioral emphasis to incorporate notions of trust, connectedness, and civic engagement. This study presents two data sets on the relationship of participation to empowerment. The first replicates and extends previous research by examining participation with interactional as well as intrapersonal empowerment. Second is the examination of how the quality of the participatory experience-the cohesive nature of participation-is related to interactional and intrapersonal empowerment. Findings support and extend previous findings, reliably cluster residents by the degree of connectedness in their participatory experiences, and reveal that social cohesion is related to intrapersonal empowerment.

The purpose of this paper is to present a case study of two conceptually similar community organizing efforts that highlights commonalities and important differences. This study first presents a qualitative analysis of two approaches to community organizing for power. Our analysis was made possible by participation and collaboration with members of community organizations which opened the way for access to documents, events, interviews, and settings that formed the basis of our case study. We also present some quantitative data concerning participant perceptions of organizing experiences and outcomes. These data highlight important differences in community organizing approaches, differences we believe can be useful to our field as we struggle with the important concepts of empowerment and power.

In one of the earliest and most often referenced writings on sense of community, Seymour Sarason noted the inherent difficulty of linking the concepts of community and psychology (Sarason, 1974). The community concept brought with it a focus on extra-individual phenomena, such as geographic place, institutional dynamics, and power. The psychological orientation was believed to narrow focus to individual experience. In the 25 plus years following Sarason’s observations, psychologists have developed a number of models of sense of community, and we have devised various instruments for the measurement of psychological sense of community. This work has deepened understanding of the psychology of community phenomena such as belonging and mutual commitment. However, this focus on psychological experience has been achieved at the cost of largely ignoring the role of community and social phenomena that strongly influence individual and group experience of community. This observation is not new. It was made by Dunham in a 1986 critique of research on psychological sense of community, concluding that we had “shot wide of the mark” by not incorporating aspects of community theory into our analyses (Dunham, 1986, p. 400). Similarly, Wiesenfeld (1996, p. 339) noted that the “homogeneous quality of community” had been overemphasized.