PS282 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1-13: Empowered, Personal Development, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
Document Summary
Community psych is different from other fields of psych in two ways: community psych offers a different way to think about human behaviours. We focus on community contexts of behavior, interested in effective ways to prevent problems rather than treat them after they arise. The single most contributing factor to homelessness in the states has nothing to do with the character of the individuals, it is a lack of affordable housing in our communities. The best predictor of the extent of homelessness in a community is the ratio of available, affordable housing units to the number of persons and families seeking them. Factors such as drug abuse, mental illness, and domestic violence as the main causes of homelessness represents an individualistic perspective, focused on how homeless people are different from those with housing. Problem definition: shift from individualistic to a structural/ecological perspective.
