T here's a short answer and a long answer. The long answer is that community psychology represents a new perspective for looking at the problems of everyday life, a paradigm shift. It recognizes that many of the problems people confront arise not from disturbances within their individual psyches, but from the failures of community systems to adequately socialize and support its citizens. It replaces the traditional clinical perspective on helping that sees people in terms of their pathologies and deficits with the notion that all people have strengths and competencies. For community psychologists, successful helping is viewed as a mutual process.
Community psychology is ultimately about empowering others.
In the following paragraphs, we present several examples that show the range of ways community psychologists work to this end. Suburbanization and urban renewal have taken its churches and entire blocks of business from its center. Wilson has also had an infusion of new people who have not always settled in comfortably with the old. This is no accident. Gaye Rizzo is an unlikely librarian.