Anne E. Brodsky

Resilient single mothers in risky neighborhoods: Negative psychological sense of community

Qualitative interviews with 10 African American single mothers raising children in risky communities and identified as resilient were analyzed to explore psychological sense of community (PSOC). Results suggest that a lack of PSOC, rather than a null finding, can be meaningful and associated with positive outcomes. Thus, PSOC which has heretofore, been operationalized as unipolar, can actually be either positive or negative. Negative PSOC can be adaptive and lead to positive outcomes for individuals who perceive their community to be a burden rather than a resource. Transcript excerpts, which illustrate both positive and negative PSOC, are presented and the advantages of this expansion in the conceptualization of PSOC are discussed, as well as implications for community interventions.

Layers of identity: Multiple psychological senses of community within a community setting

This article explores psychological sense of community (PSOC), a feeling of belonging to, importance of, and identification with a community. In much of the research on PSOC, there has been a focus on identifying a single PSOC for an individual in a setting. Qualitative and quantitative data are used here to investigate the presence and operation of multiple psychological senses of community for individuals. These multiple PSOCs are explored in two macro, territorial settings and a subcommunity of one of these settings: a job training and education center for underserved women in Baltimore City. Exploration of multiple PSOCs at the macro- and subcommunity levels expands our conceptualization of the operation of PSOC and has real-life implications for fostering positive outcomes in multicultural communities.

Multiple Psychological Senses of Community in Afghan Context: Exploring Commitment and Sacrifice in an Underground Resistance Community

The study of positive outcomes associated with strong psychological sense of community (PSOC) has grown worldwide. Yet most research explores PSOC as a uni-dimensional (positive) variable operating in a single referent community. Theoretical and empirical literature has suggested, however, that PSOC can be positive, neutral or negative (Brodsky in J Commun Psychol 24(4):347–363, 1996; Brodsky et al. in Psychological sense of community: Research, applications and implications. Kluwer, New York 2002) and since people live in multiple physical and relational communities, there may be multiple PSOCs (M-PSOC) operating simultaneously and interactively (Brodsky and Marx in J Commun Psychol 29(2):1–18, 2001). This paper explores the operation of M-PSOC in the lives of Afghan women, and male supporters, who belonged to a resistance organization before, during and after the Taliban regime. Decisions to join and stay in this community can be explained, in part, through the differentiation of positive, organizational-level PSOC from negative, macro-community-level PSOC. In addition, M-PSOC suggests unique cultural meanings of the terms “community” and “choice.” Findings have implications for cross-cultural community work and for fostering resilient sub-communities in the face of macro and societal-level risks and oppression.

A Transconceptual Model of Empowerment and Resilience: Divergence, Convergence and Interactions in Kindred Community Concepts

Resilience and empowerment are widely employed concepts in community psychology and other social sciences. Although empowerment is more closely associated with community psychology, both concepts hone to community psychology’s strengths-based values, recognizing, respecting, and promoting local capacity and positive outcomes. Both concepts also have been critiqued for lacking clear consensus regarding definition, operationalization, and measurement (Cattaneo and Chapman in Am Psychol 65(7):646–659, 2010; Luthar et al. in Child Dev 71(3):543–562, 2000). This deficiency is reflected in the wide ranging applications of each term independently, and is particularly concerning when the terms are used together or interchangeably. Theoretical work on these concepts’ boundaries and interaction is lacking. This paper builds on the authors’ prior work operationalizing the processes and outcomes of each concept (Brodsky et al. in Am J Community Psychol 47(3–4):217–235, 2011; Cattaneo and Chapman in Am Psychol 65(7):646–659, 2010; Cattaneo and Goodman in Psychol Violence, in press) to present a combined transconceptual model illuminating the divergence, convergence, and interactions between the two. Both resilience and empowerment are fueled by unsatisfying states, but are differentiated by, among other things, internally (resilience) versus externally (empowerment) focused change goals. Goal determinants include context, power differentials, and other risks and resources. These concepts have the potential to facilitate each other, and understanding their interaction can better inform community psychologists’ work with marginalized populations.

Expanding the Conceptualization of PSOC

The chapters of this book are but a small example of the continually growing body of evidence showing that psychological sense of community (PSOC) is a meaningful construct across a range of types of communities, as well as being a construct that is significantly related to individual and community outcomes. These findings appear to be the case whether community is defined as a geographic territory (e.g., Brodsky, O’Campo & Aronson, 1999; Davidson & Cotter, 1986; Garcia, Giuliani, & Wiesenfeld, 1999), a physical setting (e.g., Battistich, Solomon, Watson, & Schaps, 1997; Brodsky & Marx, 2001; Pretty, Andrewes, & Collett, 1994), a relational community (e.g., Brodsky & Marx, 2001; Compas, 1981), or an identity group (e.g., Catano, Pretty, Southwell, & Cole, 1993; Sonn, 1996; Sonn & Fisher, 1996).

Between Synergy and Conflict: Balancing the Processes of Organizational and Individual Resilience in an Afghan Women’s Community

This paper examines individual and organizational resilience processes among members of The Revolutionary Association of the Women of Afghanistan, (RAWA), an Afghan women’s underground resistance organization located in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Since 1977, RAWA has used humanitarian and political means to educate, serve, and motivate women and to advocate for peace, secular democracy, and human rights. The authors analyzed 110 qualitative interviews, collected in Pakistan and Afghanistan between December 2001 and July 2002. An iterative coding framework identified processes of resilience and domain specific stressors (risks) and resources (protective factors) at the individual and organizational level. Further analysis found that these process codes clustered by function into components of an operational model of individual and organizational resilience. While individual and organizational resilience are described by the same model, these two levels of resilience were found to operate in synergy as well as in conflict. Although this paper explores a unique setting, we argue that a better understanding of resilience processes in general will come from increased attention to context.

When One Plus One Equals Three: The Role of Relationships and Context in Community Research

This paper explores the role of relationships within and between the community of the researchers and the community of the research participants, as they relate to qualitative, community psychology research. Although relationships are salient to all research, their role is particularly prominent in qualitative research, in which a closer rapport is established between researcher and research participant than in quantitative research, and the impact of both sides of this interaction on the research process is acknowledged. Instead of merely looking at the community and relationships of the participants, the usual focus of research, this paper also explores the often-overlooked community and relationships of the researchers and then goes on to look at the impact on the research process of the interaction of these two separate communities. This inside story, while seldom explicitly explored or articulated, has implications for community research in general and particularly for applied research.

More Than Epistemology: Relationships in Applied Research With Underserved Communities

The nature and consequences of researcher-participant relationships are explored within methodological frameworks, and the impact of relationship roles and decisions are examined through an example of applied research with low-income women and an agency that serves them. Three types of relationship issues and decisions are discussed: (1) the construction of research relationships with two groups of participants: agency staff and agency clients; (2) the involvement of multiple researchers; and (3) the definition and boundaries of the research relationships pertinent to work with people and communities with limited resources. Researcher-participant relationship dilemmas and decisions have implications for the quality of our research and the lives of our participants.

Bridging the Dialectic: Diversity, Psychological Sense of Community, and Inclusion

Although, there are many times when P/SOC and diversity appear in opposition, I argue that this conflict is not inherent to the concepts or their joint value, but to social contexts in which they are enacted in real life. The primary values of community psychology-building and supporting positive communities, social change, and social justice within a framework that recognizes the centrality of diversity, culture, inclusion, power, and privilege-actually bind diversity and community together. Thus, we can bridge this seeming dialectic through deeper reflection about the real and intended meaning, operationalization, and application of these two terms, and a reliance on the central values of our field.

The Role of Majority Groups in Diversity Programs

The underrepresentation of women in technical fields is a widely acknowledged national problem, limiting both the raw size of the talent pool and the diversity of experiences and perspectives of those who will design solutions to key problems facing society. Empowering women to succeed in these fields is clearly one important component of any solution. Because the population in those fields will likely continue to be overwhelmingly male for some time to come, men must also be a key component of the solution. Specifically, since the attitudes of the majority group are a strong determinant of climate, it is almost equally important to foster a population of men supportive of increasing the representation of women. As at most universities and technical companies, women are a minority in all majors in the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) College of Engineering and Information Technology (COEIT). In most majors, they are a small minority. The UMBC Center for Women and Information Technology (CWIT) is dedicated to increasing the representation of women in engineering and information technology fields. At the heart of these efforts is the CWIT Scholar Program, a selective merit scholarship program for undergraduates majoring in engineering and IT who are committed to increasing the representation of women in those fields. In addition to financial support, the CWIT Scholar Program provides a supportive community, academic and professional development programming, networking opportunities, and a residential Living Learning Community. Almost from the beginning, some CWIT scholars have been men. 28 percent of current CWIT scholars are men. Perhaps not surprisingly, female CWIT scholars have dramatically higher retention and completion rates than other women majoring in these fields. In this article, we look at a second effect of the CWIT Scholar Program, that of changing awareness and attitudes of the men who participate. We discuss programs and present results of a survey of attitudes regarding technical, academic, and gender issues in engineering and IT education. We disaggregate survey participants to show differences between the attitudes of women, scholar men, and men not participating in a diversity program.