Community Psychology Chapter 16 1 What perspectives and principles define community psychology According to community psychology what causes psychological problems Where is community psychology usually practiced a Community psychology Pg 460 psychological approach that emphasizes the role of environmental forces in creating and alleviating problems preventive rather than remedial in orientation it attends to the fit between the person and the environment rather than the inadequacies of either and it focuses on identifying the strengths and resources of people and communities b Major aspects of the perspective are cultural relativity diversity and ecology the fit between the person and the environment has several implications i Community psychologists don t focus exclusively on inadequate environments or persons they focus on the ecology fit and whether or does or does not promote adaptation ii Emphasizes the creation of alternatives through identifying and developing the resources and strengths of people and communities the focus is on action directed toward the competencies of the persons and environments rather than their deficits iii Believe that the differences among people and communities are desirable societal resources therefore shouldn t be allocated according to a single standard of competence 1 Doesn t identify with a single social norm or value but looks to promote diversity c Three sets of defining concern human resource development political activity and science i In many ways the three elements are antagonistic 1 Political activists are often impatient and decide more traditional clinicians bring societal change too little too late 2 Clinicians overly criticize activists as unprofessional and overly concerned with hawking their own visions of the world a Both groups often regard scientists as too far removed from real problems to know what s going on in the world scientists see both groups as overly willing to act on the basis of invalidated hunches and lack of data or a viable theory ii True societal changes through mental health require the cooperation of these three groups 1 Scientists must provide data to support and direct the efforts of clinicians and political activists and political activists must help scientists with funding iii Not a field that emphasizes individual disease or an individual treatment model its focus on preventive rather than curative 2 What historical factors made it possible for community psychology to take root in the United States a 1955 Congress formed the Joint Commission on mental health and illness i Encouraged the development of community mental health centers and the reduction in the population of mental hospitals b 1963 Kennedy bill funded the construction of mental health centers i Based on the idea that psychological distress and the development of mental disorders were influenced by adverse environmental conditions Kennedy called for an approach to prevent mental disorders 1 Aims were to promote early detection of mental health problems treat acute disorders and establish comprehensive delivery systems of services that would prevent the warehousing of chronic patients in mental hospitals 2 To qualify for funds they had to provide five services a Inpatient care outpatient care partial hospitalization working during the day but living in the hospital for example 24 7 emergency services consultation services c 1965 conference held in Swampscott Massachusetts birth of community psychology i Shortly after the conference the division of community psychology for research and action was organized within the APA after that the community mental health journal and American journal of community psychology began publishing d 1970 the health centers are up and running i Carter created commissioned a panel on mental health with specific directives to promote CMH center and their facilities 1 More journals began to come out textbooks were being published e 1980 Reagans election lead to changes in funding for the centers that gradually fragmented the services available and reduced the emphasis on focused centralized mental health centers and the community mental health systems began to fall apart i We still have all of the criteria listed in Kennedy s original bill but there are less of them and they re not all in one unit they re separate buildings 3 Read the two boxes detailing community psychology programs on page 470 of your book What is similar about these approaches What about them strikes you as different from psychotherapy as practiced in a clinic or private practice setting a High Scope Perry preschool program helps kids who are deemed at risk for school failure i Based on rational that poverty often leads to school failure which in turn results in adult poverty and social problems ii Targets kids from low SES areas iii Characterized by b Jobs Program 1 Developmentally appropriate curriculum 2 Class size limits with two adults who ve had training in early child development 3 Supervisory support of staff and frequent in service training 4 Emphasis on parental involvement in child s education 5 Sensitivity to the needs of children and their families i Loss of employment can lead to a number of problems including depression substance abuse health problems family conflict suicide and financial strain ii Administered in a group format and involves multiple 3 hour sessions over 1 or 2 weeks 1 Focuses on training to see employment effectively behavioral skills for interviewing Increasing self confidence of job seekers 2 3 Stress inoculation training for coping with barriers to re employment and setbacks 4 What are primary secondary and tertiary prevention When does each type of model intervene i e before or after people develop abnormal behaviors and what kinds of projects or programs might attempt each type of prevention a Primary intervention Pg 466 significant problems emerge as a consequence of these conditions correcting negative conditions before application of this prevention model often necessitates a degree of social change i Represents the most radical change from traditional ways of coping with mental health problems ii The complexity of human problems often requires preventative strategies that depend on social change and the redistribution of power 1 Examples programs to reduce job discrimination enhance school curricula improve housing etc 2 Also grouped under this is genetic counseling head start prenatal care for
View Full Document
Unlocking...