This paper investigates the process of how actions of community groups are initiated and carried out. It also identifies key characteristics of participation in community action projects. Social actions in two communities in North Carolina are studied from a 10-year period. (Author/CT)

Community development practitioners (n=33) in Australia, Botswana, Canada, Malaysia, and the United States held strong beliefs about community involvement in change. They developed theories-in-action that guided practice and derived ideas and information form colleagues and the literature. A conceptual framework about reflective practice was…

Evaluation of public service programs uses language and techniques inimical to community development. Key elements of a better approach are as follows: (1) community participation; (2) emphasis on qualitative measures of success that complement the quantitative; (3) strong awareness of the importance of process goals; (4) concern with sustainable…

Study of three community collaborations in family violence coordinating councils identified factors influencing sustainability: clearly stated goals, identification of key members, and good internal and external communication. Collaborations succeed when they enable individuals and their organizations to agree on vision, mission, and goals. (SK)

Three case studies (senior citizens center, senior citizens housing project, and a housing and employment project) are assessed against an operational definition of community development. Since only one of these fits the definition, the author concludes that projects designated as community development activity by agencies and workers often do not…

This paper proposes bargaining as a useful conflict resolution skill for community developers. Key bargaining concepts and practice principles from the fields of international conflict resolution, the social action model of community organization, and political science are discussed. (Author/CT)

Whole-community organizing is a new approach to community change that is supported by theories of social relations and interaction. It uses an asset-based approach to community development. Empirical studies have identified ways to mobilize community assets and build community from inside out. (Contains 58 references.) (SK)

A case study analysis of four communities, in which reputation, decision, and position measures of leadership were used, found that there was a high degree of overlap among the three methods in each of the four communities. (LRA)

Case study of a community and youth leadership development program in Rural Georgia illustrates a blend of traditional and participatory strategies, including participatory action research. Evaluation demonstrates the importance of working with community culture, forming cohesive groups, choosing facilities carefully, and reconciling community and…

Interprets Saul Alinsky's contribution to community development through three themes: community cohesiveness as one goal of community organization; political participation and goal of broadening community participation in city-wide decision making; and the use of nonviolent conflict in unifying diverse local interests and effectively bargaining…

One hundred ninety-seven volunteers were surveyed to assess community development knowledge and skill gains and community involvement and community building behavior from participation in a Master Gardener program. Though the program was intended to disseminate horticultural information, it was found to have a serendipitous effect on community…

Describes a strategy for a community development program that was to identify and connect needs and services through coordinated networks of organized citizens, businesses, agency staff, and local government. Reports that the strategy resulted in such programs as a county information service, a family life center, an interagency council, and a…

Uses an interactionist perspective to show community's influence in the well-being of people. Develops thesis that sustenance adequacy and community are social conditions encouraging emergence of the self-actualization motive. Presents hypotheses concerning contributions of various community types to social well-being and suggests community…

Disengagement, the final phase in the community development process, receives little attention in the literature. Many community development practitioners make decisions regarding disengagement intuitively. This exploratory study of disengagement from community units was based on interviews with eleven University of Missouri Extension Community…

Participant observation and intensive interviews of fifty people from a rural midwestern community provided information on the importance of women in women's organizations and in behind-the-scenes arenas of local politics and economics. Bringing women into community studies expands the concept of community into private, familial arenas where…