UNDERSTANDING ORGANIZATIONS

HOD PSY 3470

Fall 2003

Thursday 2 to 5 pm

Administration Building, Room 12

Instructor: Isaac Prilleltensky, Ph.D.

Professor of Human and Organizational Development

Mayborn 102b

Office: 343-4144

Office hours: T-R 11 - 12

E-mail: isaac.prilleltensky@vanderbilt.edu

Webpage: http://www.education.miami.edu/facultysites/isaacp/

Teaching Assistants: Scot Evans, M.Ed.

Office: 293-6971

http://people.vanderbilt.edu/~scotney.d.evans

E-mail: scotney.d.evans@vanderbilt.edu

Carrie Hanlin

Email: hanlingirl@yahoo.com

Required reading

1. Nelson, G., & Prilleltensky, I. (in preparation). Community psychology: In pursuit of liberation and well-being. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

A pre-publication draft may be purchased at the copy center. The book is also available at http://www.education.miami.edu/facultysites/isaacp/teaching.html

2. Prilleltensky, I., & Nelson, G. (2002). Doing psychology critically: Making a difference in diverse settings. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

Course Description

Community psychology is concerned with the promotion of wellness at the personal, interpersonal, organizational, and community levels. This field of research and action seeks the promotion of wellness at the intersection of all these levels and domains. Whereas other courses in psychology and human and organizational development concentrate on the first three domains, this class will concentrate on the community level and on the interaction among all four spheres of development. We will learn, for example, how factors at the community level affect organizational dynamics, which, in turn, affect interpersonal and personal well-being. As such, this will be an integrative course.

We will explore how individuals, groups, organizations and communities interact to create possibilities for wellness or oppression, development or suffering, health or illness. Individual people, groups, organizations and communities are both the recipients and the sources of health and wellness at the same time. You can think of yourself as the beneficiary of community opportunities (health, education, safety, employment, clear environment, etc.) and also as an agent of opportunities for others (you can work as a teacher or surgeon, community developer or government planner, or you can volunteer at the local food bank). We are all sources of our own personal and collective wellness, and we are all recipients of the wellness generated by other people, groups, and communities. In this course we will learn how we can enhance our personal wellness and the wellness of the community at large.

To achieve our learning objective we will draw on literature from various fields of study. In addition to the two basic books we will also review a variety of books from other disciplines. Students will choose a book of their choice and present a summary and critique in class.

Class will involve participation and discussion. I assume students would do the readings ahead of time. Students will take responsibility for presenting and leading discussions. We may choose to conduct an action-research project as a class. Possibilities include participating in PsyACT or any other research or action projects of interest to class. This will be discussed early in the semester.

Objectives

This course is designed to help you

· Understand how people’s wellness is affected by the relationships they have, by the organizations they interact with, and by the communities they live in.

· See connections among various levels of analysis affecting wellness, oppression and liberation.

· Explore in depth the role of power in wellness, oppression and liberation.

· Analyze in depth a social issue of importance to you and recommend viable solutions.

· Integrate knowledge from various disciplines and apply it to social issues.

· Undertake a small research and/or action project in a small group.

· Improve your practical and interventions skills

· Sharpen your presentation, analytical, and writing skills.

Special focus for PhD and Masters’ students

This class will combine the talents of PhD and Masters’ students. While the two programs share a philosophical approach, the needs of each group are slightly different. Consequently, the two groups will undertake slightly different projects and presentations in class. In the end, we will all benefit from the different emphases of both groups. If you are a student from another department, you are welcome to choose the type of project that suits your needs the best. We will all cover similar material, but students will pay particular attention to different issues in their papers and presentations. Masters’ students will concentrate on applications and practical implications of the material, whereas Doctoral students will focus more on research and theory building. These variations will be observed in the assignments for each group.

Requirements for PhD students

Component	Percentage of grade
Participation in class	10
Attendance	5
Class presentation of book review	5
Written summary of book review (5 double space pages)	5
Class presentation of paper on webs of wellness	10
Paper	30
Individual or small group action project	15
Take home exam	20
Total	100

Attendance & Participation

Attendance and participation are essential. Students are expected to attend all classes and to be on time. Participation in class will be based on your active involvement in class discussions. Each class there will be a discussion of the readings assigned for that date. Guidelines for class participation and attendance may be found in attachment A at the end of the syllabus.

Book Review

To enhance our interdisciplinary knowledge regarding community issues, each student will read a book from a discipline other than psychology and present to class orally and in written form. Guidelines for the book review may be found in attachment B.

Paper

Each student will write a paper on a topic of her or his interest. The paper will integrate knowledge from various disciplines and will focus on webs of wellness. Instead of looking at single level factors that influence wellness and oppression, students will concentrate on the connections among various levels of analysis. Guidelines for the paper may be found in attachment C.

Class presentation of paper

You will have 20 minutes to present the main conclusions of your paper. Please concentrate on the webs of wellness. Consider using graphic materials to portray the connections among the various components of wellness. Guidelines for the paper presentation are in attachment D.

Test

There will be a take home exam for both groups. The exam will address integrative questions pertaining to assessment and intervention in the community. The exam will consist of approximately 3 questions and students will be allowed approximately three typed double spaced pages per question.

Action Project

This is an opportunity for you to work alone or with classmates on a project in which you make a contribution in line with the tenets of community psychology. A possibility is to participate in PsyACT and assist with some of its actions. However, I’m open to other suggestions that we may develop together in class. This is worth 15% of the final grade. Students will assign a mark to themselves for this portion of class.

Requirements for HOCD Masters students

Component	Percentage of grade
Participation in class	10
Attendance	5
Class presentation on intervention skills	5
Written summary of presentation on intervention skills (5 double space pages)	5
Class presentation of field project	10
Paper on field project	30
Individual or small group action project (related or unrelated to field project)	15
Take home exam	20
Total	100

Attendance & Participation (same as above for PhD students)

Class Presentation of Intervention Skills

To enhance our understanding of intervention skills, students in HOCD will choose a chapter from a book (or an entire book if they so choose) and present on interventions skills required of community psychologists. Students may choose from either of the textbooks which have chapters on training and interventions. The “Doing Psychology Critically” book contains an entire section on training and applications. The “Community Psychology” book contains three chapters on interventions (chapters 8, 9, and 10). Together, all these chapters cover skills in social, community, small group, and individual interventions in various settings. You are welcome to choose another source for your presentation on intervention skills, but you don’t have to. Guidelines for this presentation may be found in attachment E.

Field Project

This is an opportunity for you to work alone or with classmates on a project in which you study a community issue here in town. You will identify a community organization and request permission to observe some of their operations and to interview some of their staff, managers, and service recipients. You will interview some people working and/or receiving services from a community or health organization. You will develop a paper based on your findings and use the course texts and outside sources to support your conclusions. Guidelines for the field project and the paper may be found in attachment F at the end of the syllabus.

Paper

The main objective of the paper is to understand how factors at the personal, interpersonal, organizational, and community levels interact to promote or inhibit the wellness of individuals, groups and/or communities. During the field project you will explore how people perceive a particular social issue (alcoholism, crime, illness, corruption, abuse of power). As part of the literature review you will explore what research has to say about the same issue. In your paper you will integrate the knowledge gained from the field project and from the literature. You will be expected to map how the different levels of analysis interact to create wellness or problems in living. Guidelines for the paper may be found in attachment G.

Class presentation of field project

Depending on the number of students and groups you will present your project to either the entire class or a small group. In attachment H you may see guidelines for presenting the paper and what to focus on.

Test (Same as for PhD students, see above).

Action Project

Please follow the guidelines stated above for PhD students. The only difference is that students may wish to take some action related to their field project. As with PhD students, the individual or group will self-assess their mark out of 15%.

Grade Scale (rounded off)

97-100 A+

93-96 A

90-92 A-

87-89 B+

83-86 B

80-82 B-

77-79 C+

73-76 C

70-72 C-

67-69 D+

63-66 D

60-62 D-

<=59 F

Honor Code

The Vanderbilt Honor Code governs all work in this course and implies that what is presented to the instructor, as the students' own work is in fact in their own words. It is imperative that students are careful not to "borrow" phrases or sentences from source material. This is plagiarism and will result in a zero for that assignment. However, student cooperation in developing paper topics, proofreading, and group projects is encouraged.

Students with Disabilities

If you have a learning or physical disability, or if you learn best by utilizing a particular method, please bring me an official letter from the Opportunity Development Center (2-4705) explaining your specific needs so that I can make appropriate arrangements. I can only do this successfully if you discuss your needs with me in advance of the assignments. I will maintain the confidentiality of your learning need.

Websites in Community Psychology

Community Psychology Network,

Community Psychology UK,

Council of Community Psychology Program Directors,

European Network of Community Psychologists,

Society for Community Research and Action,

Videos relevant to community psychology, http://www.msu.edu/user/lounsbu1/clearfilms.html

Community Psychology Journals:

Applied and Preventive Psychology

American Journal of Community Psychology

Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health

Canadian Journal of Program Evaluation

Community Mental Health Journal

Journal of Community Psychology

Journal of Community and Applied Social Psychology

Journal of Prevention and Intervention in the Community (formerly Prevention in Human Services)

Journal of Primary Prevention

Prevention Science

Prevention and Treatment (on-line journal)

Social Policy

ATTACHMENT A:

GUIDELINES FOR CLASS PARTICIPATION AND ATTENDANCE

Attendance (5%)

Students will obtain 5% for perfect attendance without late arrivals. You may be excused from two classes (with good reason!) without penalty. Each additional class missed will result in a 1-point deduction from your final grade. Late arrivals will result in a ½ point deduction from your final grade.

Participation (10%)

Each student will obtain 10% of the final grade by participating actively in class. Some guidelines for class participation include:

· Ask questions related to the material

· Answer questions presented by the instructor

· Contribute to small group discussions

· Take leadership roles in small group activities

· Initiate discussion

· Provide useful feedback to other students making presentations

· Demonstrating supportive attitude toward other students making presentations

· Introduce ideas germane to the topics but not covered in the reading materials

· Connecting course material to current affairs

· Submitting short assignments done during class time

· Taking the lead in generating discussions related to the readings

Part of the participation grade will be based on students taking the lead in discussing the readings. To fulfill this requirement for participation, each week a different student will prepare a set of questions related to one or more of the assigned readings. See schedule of classes to find a class when you want to lead the discussion.

ATTACHMENT B:

GUIDELINES FOR BOOK REVIEW

Students will be asked to read a book dealing with a community or social issue. Preferably the book will be from a discipline other than psychology. Try to select a book related to one of the chapters in the two textbooks and plan to present your book review at the same class the particular chapter will be discussed. If you want to review a book that is not related to any of the chapters in the textbooks let me know. I’m sure we can work around that.

In general, consider the following points in every presentation you make.

· Introduce the topic clearly

· Stick to time allotted

· Provide an outline of the presentation

· Speak clearly

· Speak at appropriate speed – not too fast not too slow

· Modulate voice to create and maintain interest

· Use body language and eye contact to establish connection with the audience

· Use visuals that are clear and not overcrowded

· Use audio or visual materials that are interesting and germane to the topic

· Avoid monotone voice

· Follow logical sequence in presentation

· Have opening and concluding comments

· Have clear take home message

· Provide a short handout summarizing the presentation

· Power point is encouraged but not a must if you can have good overheads or other visuals

Specific guidelines for presenting the book review are as follows:

1. Find a book of your interest related to one or more of the chapters in the textbooks (some suggestions are given below)

2. Present in class the main ideas of the book

3. Relate the ideas to a chapter or chapters in the textbooks

4. Present your ideas in 15 minutes

5. Allow 15 minutes for discussion for a total of 30 minutes

Your grade for this assignment will be based on the following:

Presentation (1 point for each component)

1. Clear presentation of main ideas

2. Generate and maintain interest during presentation

3. Stimulate discussion following 15 minute presentation

4. Ability to stay within the time allotted (15 minute presentation and 15 minute discussion)

5. Integration of book review with class readings

Written book review (1 point for each component)

1. Clear presentation of main ideas

2. Stay within the 5 double spaced pages

3. Relate material to class readings

4. Clear expression and grammar

5. Originality and creativity.

ATTACHMENT C

GUIDELINES FOR PAPER (30% of grade)

Community psychology seeks to explain and modify social phenomena based on multilevel and interdisciplinary knowledge. Although this is often proclaimed as an ideal, it is rarely achieved. In this course we will engage in multilevel and interdisciplinary discussions.

The image that can guide our efforts is webs of wellness. Any one aspect of wellness (personal, relational, organizational or collective) is connected to all the other levels. Furthermore, more than one set of factors is involved in the promotion of wellness, oppression, or liberation. Economic, political, psychological, sociological, cultural, historical and other factors influence the presence or absence or wellness.

Your job in this paper is to be explicit about

1. The interdisciplinary factors affecting the issue at hand

2. The connections among various levels of analysis affecting the issue at hand

3. The webs that sustain wellness, oppression, and liberation

The first two chapters of Nelson and Prilleltensky and the first section of Prilleltensky and Nelson offer an introduction about the various levels of wellness. The concept of webs of wellness will also be reviewed and discussed in class.

Recent literature on networks shows that the very links among components of a phenomenon are just as important as the parts the links are supposed to connect. If you can, it would be good for you to depict in a diagram the webs of wellness influencing the problem at hand. Try to show how dynamics generated by the interaction of various factors affect the issue or subject matter you are exploring.

For example, if you’re exploring the topic of child abuse, you will show how social norms of violence penetrate the family and how parents feel that it is ok to physically punish children. If you are exploring substance abuse, you will not only talk about the personal problems that lead people to substance abuse but you will also discuss the prevalence of smoking, advertising, prescription medicines, alcohol, and the glamorization of drinking. You can think of these as examples showing the links among various components of wellness. A change in one component may, for good or bad, create a positive or negative chain effect.

Criteria for grading the paper

This type of work combines knowledge from various disciplines with conceptual integration. The paper should cover the following areas:

1. Description of issue or subject matter (child abuse, violence, corporate corruption, ideology, power, democracy, unemployment, globalization, etc) (2/30 of paper)

2. Webs of understanding: Multi-level, interdisciplinary explanations of social phenomena. (7/30)

3. Webs of change: Multi-level, interdisciplinary interventions with potential for improving wellness, reducing oppression and maximizing liberation (7/30)

4. Implications for theory, research and action (2/30)

5. Cross disciplinary, pertinent and sufficient references (4/30)

6. Format and length: APA 5^th edition, 25 pages including references, tables, and figures. Please prepare the paper as if it were ready for submission to a journal (2/30)

7. Clear organization and flow (2/30)

8. Clarity of expression (2/30)

9. Originality and creativity (2/30)

Total of all sections and criteria: 30/100 of total course grade.

General Marking Guidelines:

An "A" Paper/Essay: A paper that is exceptional. It is interesting or unusual and demonstrates sophistication of thought. The main points are clear, complex, well developed, and well supported. The structure of the paper follows a clear logical organization, and all sources are critically examined. It is free of grammatical and spelling errors. An “A+” paper will rely on the readings assigned in class plus additional sources from the library. Although I don’t expect you to do more library research to fulfill the assignment, your grade will definitely improve if you show that you have explored the literature beyond the basic readings from the course.

A "B" Paper/Essay: A paper that is solid and fulfills the assignment. It has a clear argument but minor lapses in development. It touches on the complexity of the argument and shows careful reading of the sources. The structure follows a logical progression of ideas, but not all evidence is clearly related to the main ideas. It may contain a few grammatical problems, but not enough to make reading difficult.

A "C" Paper/Essay: A paper that is adequate but less effective in responding to the assignment. It presents the central idea in general terms and demonstrates basic comprehension of the sources. It is difficult to find a logical structure to the argument, and the paper often relies on generalizations or unrelated examples. Sentences may be awkward or confusing enough to make reading difficult.

A "D" Paper/Essay: A paper that does not have a clear argument or does not respond to the assignment. The argument may be too vague or obvious to be developed, and there is little complexity to the ideas. The organization can be difficult to follow, and the paper offers insufficient evidence.

An "F" Paper/Essay: A paper that does not respond to the assignment, has no central argument, and uses no sources. There is little apparent organization. There is no supporting evidence, or it is irrelevant.

ATTACHMENT D: GUIDELINES FOR PRESENTATION OF PAPER

General guidelines

· Introduce the topic clearly

· Stick to 20 minutes of presentation and 10 minutes of discussion

· Provide an outline of the presentation

· Speak clearly

· Speak at appropriate speed – not too fast not too slow

· Modulate voice to create and maintain interest

· Use body language and eye contact to establish connection with the audience

· Use visuals that are clear and not overcrowded

· Use audio or visual materials that are interesting and germane to the topic

· Avoid monotone voice

· Follow logical sequence in presentation

· Have opening and concluding comments

· Have clear take home message

· Provide a short handout summarizing the presentation

· Power point is encouraged but not a must if you can have good overheads or other visuals

Your role as facilitator:

· Do not dominate the discussion, just facilitate it

· Make sure most people in class participate

· Stick to the 10 minutes limit

· Generate discussion

· Ask stimulating questions

· Be clear about the questions you ask

· Introduce and close the discussion

· Draw conclusions from the discussion and or exercise

The assessment of the presentation and discussion will be based on the following (2 points for each component)

1. Clear presentation of main ideas
2. Generate and maintain interest during presentation
3. Stimulate discussion following 20 minute presentation
4. Ability to stay within the time allotted (20 minute presentation and 10 minute discussion)

5. Conceptualization of webs of wellness

ATTACHMENT E:

GUIDELINES FOR MASTERS HOCD STUDENTS PRESENTING INTERVENTION SKILLS

Choose an intervention skill you would like to explore in depth. You can choose from the following options:

• Social and community interventions

• Small group interventions

• Individual level interventions

Furthermore, you can choose to concentrate on a variety of settings, including

• Counseling, Workplaces, or Educational settings

• Community or health settings

• Government or non-government organizations

The main objective of this presentation is for you to share practical skills required in intervening at any one of these places, at any one of these levels. Please prepare a handout (5 pages maximum) describing the main skills. Please review attachment D also for tips on presentation skills. The assessment of the presentation and discussion will be based on the following (1 point for each component)

1. Clear presentation of main ideas

2. Generate and maintain interest during presentation

3. Stimulate discussion following 20 minute presentation

4. Ability to stay within the time allotted (20 minute presentation and 10 minute discussion)

5. Teaching of practical skills

The handout will be assessed on (1 point for each component)

6. Clear presentation of main intervention skills

7. Stay within the 5 double spaced pages

8. Relate material to practical applications

9. Use of graphs and or diagrams to portray skills

10. Originality and creativity

ATTACHMENT F: GUIDELINES FOR FIELD PROJECT FOR MASTERS STUDENTS

Field Project

You can do this project individually or in groups of 2 or 3 students. The guidelines below apply to each student. I expect each student to complete 10 visits and interview 6 or 7 people each. Although it is not compulsory, I would encourage you to volunteer at the setting where you choose to do your project. By volunteering you will give to the organization as much as you will get. You can do the interviews in pairs, but the number of interviews should double or triple depending on the number of students participating in the group. The aim of the field project is to learn first hand about a community issue affecting the well-being of people here in Nashville. Examples of issues include mental health problems, discrimination, violence against women, youth suicide, elder abuse, child abuse, workplace or school bullying, corporate corruption, abuse of power, homelessness, immigration, literacy, substance abuse, or others.

The project will entail the following components:

1. Select a health, welfare, not for profit, government, community, or advocacy organization in town. This can be any organization dealing with a community issue such as public health, mental health, housing, discrimination, unemployment, poverty, immigration, literacy, law enforcement, education, or any other institution or community group trying to promote community wellness and/or prevent suffering. I encourage you to think of government offices and services as opportunities for learning and volunteering.

2. You will need to visit the organization about 10 times. Your visits will consist of the following:

· Visit 1 -- Initial contact. Establish contact with the organization and ask permission to visit them a few times and interview 6 or 7 people within the organization. Compose a letter of introduction explaining the nature of your project. In the letter you will explain that you are taking a community psychology class in which you are expected to research in depth a social issue affecting the wellness of the population.

· During this visit you will introduce yourself and submit the letter to your contact person. In addition you will obtain archival information about the organization containing organizational structure, aims and objectives, mission statement, etc. Try to obtain whatever public documents the organization may have available for the public. Read the materials before your next visit to the organization.

· Visit 2 – Organizational observation. Spend about 2 hours within the organization observing what people do. This can be attending a staff meeting, observing how workers serve clients, how managers operate, or how nurses deal with patients. The main objective of this visit is for you to get a feel for what people do in the organization. If you are volunteering at a community center, spend some time there watching community activities. If you volunteer at a church, spend time in various activities. Your objective here is to witness and document what happens in the organization as if you were a fly on the wall.

· Visit 3: Interview director, manager, or person in charge: During this visit you will interview a manager or a person in a position of authority within the organization. During this interview you will need to find answers to the following questions:

i. Organization: What is the main aim of the organization? What do they do, what is the mission statement, how they came about, etc.

ii. Agency structure: What is the organizational structure of the agency? Hierarchy, number of employees, units within the agency, etc.

iii. Wellness: What are, according to managers or workers, the main sources of wellness for the people they serve? What are the personal, interpersonal, and community sources of wellness for the people they serve?

iv. Suffering: What are the main sources of ill health, disadvantage, suffering or oppression for the people they serve? What personal, interpersonal, institutional, and community factors influence negatively the people served by the organization?

v. Power: What is the role of power/lack of power in the life of people served by the organization? Do people feel empowered or disempowered? Do people feel dominated or oppressed by others? Do the clients oppressor or control others to the point of inflicting suffering?

vi. Opportunities: What is the role of opportunities/lack of opportunities in people’s lives? What opportunities or lack thereof have been present or absent in peoples’ lives?

vii. Control: What is the role of control/lack of control in people’s lives? Have people been responsible in creating or missing opportunities in their lives? Have circumstances been beyond their control?

viii. Community changes: What changes need to take place at the community level to improve the well-being of people served by the agency? What are some social changes required to improve wellness? What does the organization do to move in that direction?

ix. Interpersonal changes: What changes need to take place in people’s relationships to improve their well-being? What does the organization do, if anything, to improve people’s relationships?

x. Personal changes: What personal changes people need to make to improve their own wellness? How does the organization approach personal change of clients? What changes are seemed essential? How do people change habits or behavior?

· Visits 4 and 5: Interview two or three workers using the same questions presented above to the managers. You can interview the two workers together or separately; it is your choice. Whenever it says manager replace with worker and vice versa, depending on the person you are interviewing.

· Visits 6 and 7: Interview two or three people served by the organization using the questions presented in visit 3, but changing the phrasing to pertain to people’s lives. Instead of asking about the people served by the organization you will be asking people about their own lives. Rephrase the questions in advance to make sure you ask them appropriately.

· Visits 8-9: Volunteer. If at all possible, I encourage you to volunteer at the organization. Depending on the type of agency, you may be able to work with children, the elderly, the poor, immigrants, or whatever the population might be. I encourage you to do work related to the main mission of the agency and not just clerical work like answering phones or filing documents. It would be important for you to work closely with the people helped by the organization.

· Visit 10: Submit paper to agency. During this visit you will submit to managers and/or workers a 2-page summary of your paper containing some lessons and recommendations. You will find below clear instructions for the writing of the paper and related recommendations.

3. You will reassure the agency that the findings of the interviews and observations will remain confidential and will be used only for the purpose of learning. Only the professor and other students will hear about the issues raised in the project. The material will only be used for class presentation and for the assignment.

4. As guests in the working environment, students will behave in a professional manner and will do their best not to interfere with the operations of the organization. Interviews should be kept to approximately 30 minutes to minimize disruption. Upon completion of the project, students will give something back to the organization by submitting a summary of their paper with recommendations and/or volunteering a few hours of their time.

5. Part of your learning experience is to formulate the questions presented in point 2 above into interview questions with probes that are easy to understand.

6. Please note that the requirements listed above are the minimal expectations. If you have the opportunity to interview more people and to spend more time in the organization by volunteering, your knowledge of the place will increase and so will, in all likelihood, the quality of your paper. The more information you obtain about the organization, the better your paper will be.

ATTACHMENT G

GUIDELINES FOR PAPER FOR MASTERS STUDENTS (30% of grade)

You will write a paper integrating your field experience with the literature on a particular topic. The aim of the paper is to show webs of wellness among factors at the personal, interpersonal, organizational, and community levels. The idea of a web is that wellness at the different levels are interdependent and interconnected. In the paper you will explore first how wellness is influenced by factors at different levels and then you will connect all the factors to create a picture of how personal wellness is related to interpersonal, organizational, and collective wellness. As you will see in the description of each section, I expect you to connect the various parts to the relevant literature. In total, I expect that you will consult about 8 sources outside of the textbook used in class.

The references need to be academic publications, not magazine articles or webpages. Find articles in journals or books dealing with community psychology where the topics are covered. There is a list of community psychology journals at the end of the syllabus and many community psychology books are available in our library. You can see references to previous community psychology books in the textbook. You can also consult specialist books dealing with your topic at hand: substance abuse, bullying, empowerment, child abuse, etc.

The paper will consist of the following sections: (Total length approximately 18-20 pages, excluding appendices)

I. Description of issue: Here you will describe in about a page the topic you explored (child abuse, violence against women, head start, discrimination, unemployment, corporate abuse, government corruption, substance abuse). I recommend that you describe the issue and that you link it to statistics in the literature about extent of problem, prevalence, etc. Put the problem in regional, national, and international context. Suggested length: 1 page – 1/30 points.

II. Overview of the organization: Aims, mission statement, brief history, and organizational structure of the agency where you did your field experience. Give the reader an idea of what the agency is all about. Suggested length 1 page – 1/30

III. Sources of wellness and suffering: Based on the information you obtained during the interviews (see questions 3 and 4 of interview guide) and the relevant literature you will write a section on factors influencing well-being and suffering. If you wish, you can organize this section into levels of analysis: personal, interpersonal, organizational, and collective. At each level, you can describe the factors impacting on wellness and suffering based on the interviews and the literature. 4 pages – 4/30

IV. Power and control: Based on the interviews and the literature, describe the influence of power and control (or lack thereof) in the development of wellness or suffering. See questions 5 and 7 of interview guide. Once again, if you wish you may discuss power and control issues at the different levels of analysis. 2 pages – 2/30

V. Opportunities: Based on question 6 of the interview guide and the pertinent literature, describe the role of opportunities in the development of wellness or suffering for the people affected by the issue at hand. 2 pages—2/30

VI. Interventions for improving the situation: Based on questions 8, 9, and 10 of the interview guide, and the literature, describe suggestions for improving the situation. 3 pages. 2/30

VII. Integration -- Webs of wellness: So far you have been reporting on what other people have told you and what other people have written about in the literature. In this section you will integrate what you have learned with your own views and opinions about how to create “webs of wellness.” A web of wellness is the network of factors that influence the well being of individuals, groups, and societies. Each component (person, group, organization, community) is related to the other components. Your task in this section is to show how the different parts of wellness relate to each other and how power, control, and opportunity interact to promote or inhibit wellbeing for the people affected by the problem you explored. This is the part where you integrate all the previous sections of the paper. If you keep in mind the metaphor of webs of wellness, you will understand that personal wellness cannot be promoted in the absence of relational or collective wellness, and vice versa. With that idea in mind, show how all the parts of the puzzle relate to each other and what changes can be made in various parts of the web to improve wellbeing of the people concerned. Remember that in a web it’s all about connections. In the previous parts of the paper you talked about factors separately, now it’s your turn to show the links and connections among all the pieces.

For example, if you’re exploring the topic of child abuse, you will show how social norms of violence penetrate the family and how parents feel that it is ok to physically punish children. If you are exploring substance abuse, you will not only talk about the personal problems that lead people to substance abuse but you will also discuss the prevalence of smoking advertising, prescription medicines, alcohol, and the glamorization of drinking. You can think of these as examples showing the links among various components of wellness. A change in one component may, for good or bad, create a positive or negative chain effect. Feel free to use diagrams to show the connections and linkages among the various domains of wellness. 5 pages – 6/30

VIII. Limitations and conclusions: Remember that the amount of information you will obtain about the organization may be limited. Therefore, your conclusions will have limitations. If you had more time, your analysis would be more comprehensive. State limitations and draw conclusions from your study. 2 pages – 1/30

IX. Appendix A -- Logbook: Please include a logbook with the times, activities, and observations of each of your visits to the organization. For each visit, record (a) date, time, duration of visit; (b) activity undertaken such as interview, observation, review materials, etc, (c) about 5 to 15 lines of personal observations regarding the visit. The latter may include your impressions of how people feel in the place, what is the organizational climate, how are people treated, etc. .5/30

X. Appendix B – Interview guide: Insert here the exact wording of the questions and probes used during the interviews. Remember that you need to change the wording of the interview described for visit 3. When you interview people affected by the problem you need to rework the interview guide. In this section you need to include the wording for all interviews done. .5/30

XI. Appendix C – Organizational Observation: Develop a brief observational tool for your organizational observation. Decide ahead of time what type of things you will be looking for in the organization. Will you be looking at how people interact with each other? Will you look at what people do? How people feel when they are in the agency? How do they express their feelings? Following description of the tool write about a page summarizing your observations. 1/30

XII. Appendix D – Copy of summary of recommendations submitted to the organization. Remember to be modest and humble in your recommendations. After all, this is not a comprehensive consultation process. Consider giving the organization something they can use, like a diagram of your web of wellness. 1/30

Paper grading criteria

Sources for the paper: As noted above, I expect students to use 8 academic references and integrate in the body of the paper. It is not enough to cite them at the end of the paper but not to reference them in the actual text. Demonstration of extensive reading and library research will increase your chances of obtaining a better grade. Please follow the APA Manual 5^th edition for citation and format. 3/30

Format and Length: Please use APA Manual 5^th edition for formatting. Include an abstract, a title page, author’s address, etc. Kindly follow closely the guidelines, as if you were going to send this paper for publication. The manual contains specific instructions for formatting. Please follow the guidelines stated above for length of various sections. 1/30

Clear organization and flow: 2/30

Clarity of expression: 2/30

Total of all sections and criteria: 30/100 of total course grade.

See also appendix C for general guidelines on marking papers.

ATTACHMENT H

GUIDELINES FOR PRESENTATION OF FIELD PROJECT IN SMALL GROUPS

During the presentation you will concentrate on the intervention and integration part of your paper. You do not need to cover all the material but just these two components of the paper.

Depending on the number of groups, you may present your project to either the entire class or a small group. The expectations for the presentation are as follows:

· Briefly summarize in 12 minutes the essence of your project

· Share with others in the group your web of wellness

· Share with others your interventions

· Share the impact the project has had on you as a person

· Share the impact the project has had on you as a citizen in the community

Given that this may be done in small groups, there may not be access to power point facilities. Consider bringing a handout summarizing the work.

Your presentation will be assessed using the following criteria

1. Stick to 12 minutes (2 points)

2. Web of wellness (2 points)

3. Interventions (2 points)

4. Sharing of personal impact and experience (2 points)

5. Handout (2 points)

Tentative Course Schedule

Note: Videos may vary, depending on availability

Students wishing to use video clips for their presentation may consult http://www.msu.edu/user/lounsbu1/clearfilms.html

Class	Topic	Readings/Presentations
1. Aug 28	Overview of the Course Webs of Wellness
2. Sep 4	Webs of Wellness/ cont. Overview of Community Psychology Women’s issues	N & P – Chapters 1 and 2 and 18 Student leading discussion:
3. “ 11	Values and accountability Colonization and racism	N & P – Chapters 3, 6, and 16 Student leading discussion:
4. “ 18	Prevention and ecology Child abuse	N & P – Chapter 4, 22 Video: George Albee Student leading discussion:
5. “ 25	Power and community Environmental issues	N & P - Chapter 5, 14, 23 Video: John McKnight Student leading discussion:
6. Oct 2	Power, oppression, exploitation Globalization	P & N – Chapters 1 and 2 N & P – 15 Student leading discussion:
7. “ 9	Social and community Interventions Heterosexism	N & P – Chapters 7, 8, 19 P & N – Chapter 9 Student(s) leading discussion: Student(s) presenting intervention skills:
8. “ 16	Organizational Interventions Psychiatric disabilities	N & P - Chapter 9, 21 P & N – Chapters 7, 8, 10 Student leading discussion: Student(s) presenting intervention skills: Video: An Ounce of Prevention Book reviews:
9. “ 23	Small group and individual interventions Ableism	N & P – Chapters 10, 20 P & N – Chapter 6 Invited guest: Dr Ora Prilleltensky Video: "Finding Us and Them" Student(s) presenting intervention skills:
10. “ 30	Looking to the future Marginalization	N & P – Chapters 14, 24 Student leading discussion: Student(s) presenting intervention skills: Book reviews:
11. Nov 6	Roles for community psychologists	P & N – Chapter 11, 12, 13 Student leading discussion: Student(s) presenting intervention skills: Books reviews:
12.” 13	Presentations
13. “ 20	Presentations
14. Dec 2	Presentations
15. “ 9	Presentations