Community

Organization
Henelyn L. Lapizar, RSW
February 12, 2022
  According to Arlene Johnson, community is “ a group of people
gathered together in a geographic area, large or small who have
Definitions of common interests, actual or potentially recognized in the social
welfare field. A community is possibly a geographic community,
Community bounded by physical boundaries and would usually have a
common historical backgroun
  refer to a group with bonds as vision and purposes, a clear
mission, major concern, or bonded by a common functions or even
just by a common interests. As such, this would then be referred
to as a functional community.
 A COMMUNITY can be expanded to the biome which is a cluster
of interconnected localities (upland, lowland, coastal areas, the
rivers and seas) and is composed of interdependent bio-diversity
Definition of as well as interrelated vernacular communities.
 defined as “a group of people, plants, animals, and minerals that
Community inhabit a given area, share a common identity, likeness, and
conditions, and subject to the same (life-giving) laws, norms and
interests, and entitled to the enjoyment of and equitable access to
resources.
(Lifted from the handouts of Dr. Nutulla for the CD Course, 2006,
Asian Social Institute, Manila
  Community can be defined as a collectivity of individuals affecting
each other on a stable basis. (Kurt Lewin,1951) Community is an
identifiable human grouping that is predominantly informal in
organization and interaction – heterogeneous in composition,
enduring, and sharing some characteristics or attributes in
common.
 A COMMUNITY is an aggregation of families and individuals,
Definition of settled in a fairly compact and contiguous geographical area, with
significant elements of common life, as shown by manners,
Community customs, traditions and modes of speech. (Social Work Reviewer,
1978)
 The word Community is used to refer to people and the pattern of
social relationships among them when these relationships maybe
characterized by 1. A Common System of Values 2. Normatively
defined relations 3. Interdependence 4. A recognition of belonging
5. A system of stratification and 6. Locality.
 (Social Work Reviewer, 1978
  Roland Warren developed the concept of community as a
Two Concepts multitude of systems many of which were influenced by their
vertical relationship than by their horizontal relationships. As a
of Community social system, the community may be either geographic or
functional in nature.
  • A Geographic community refers to the people in
a specific geographic area as the village, barangay,
sitio, district, municipality, city, province, region,
nation or the world. Thus we refer for example to
our world as “a community of nations”
Two Concepts
 • A Functional community on the other hand is
of Community composed of people who hold common values,
share some common functions or express some
common interest such as education, health,
livelihood, labor, welfare, or recreation. Example
of this concept is the community chest, the
professional community, the fisher folk
community, the banking community. Etc
 • A. SPATIAL COMMUNITIES
 • B. AFFECTIVE OR FAMILIAL
Types of COMMUNITY •
Communities  C. SYMBOLIC OR EXPRESSIVE
COMMUNITY and
 • D. INTENTIONAL COMMUNIT
  This is a group of living-residences within some
natural or administrative, geographical
boundaries and the residents may or may not
Spatial have developed “we-feeling” depending on the
Communities history of particular community, the presence
of an out-group that poses some form of
threat, or the acknowledgment of minority
definition given by the out-group majority
  • This is an enduring social exchange network
of individuals and/or families based on a strong
Affective sense of “we-feeling” arising from affective
bonds, not from ideological commitments with
Community or without a spatial aspect to it, but in relation
to an out-group providing comparison,
competition, threat or a mere delimination.
  This is a group of people who maintain an
enduring social exchange network based on
“we-feeling” arising from their commitment
both to a belief system or to a value system or
Symbolic to an ideology reinforced by the celebration of
Community cultic devices and to the expressive community
as a goal in itself distinguished from
commitments to a temporary goals and to
groups formed only to achieve one or two
definite temporal goals.
  This is that human groupings ‘where individuals or families make a
total commitment to a rationalized and abstract value system or
to belief system withdrawing from society in some form and
Intentional defining its social boundaries clearly. • The members live
exclusively for what they profess to believe or the ideas and values
Community they stand for. Allegiance of the members is to the abstract ideals,
to the group or to the prophet and the members may or may not
develop “we-feeling” based on affective bonds with individual
members
  1. To create a support base and win votes for politicians and
parties.
 2. To mobilize people for some political end.
Some  3. To improve the problem solving capabilities and to develop the
Objectives and human resources towards better conditions of living.
 4. To preserve the indigenous cultural life.
Interests In
 5. To provide pastoral care (caring for the needs of the faith-
Community community)
 6. To remedy social problems. (deviance, crime)
 7. To promote the national interests (population control)
  8. To develop infrastructure for multinational corporations’
interests or colonial power interests (introduction of the
agricultural technological products of the Multinational
Corporation, demolitions, relocations and construction of physical
Some structures on the community territory).
Objectives and  9. To preserve the ecological and genetic or biological heritage and
indigenous technology and knowledge.
Interests In  10. To implement the programs of UN and various civil groups
Community from outside.
 11. To test or develop theories on community as well as to provide
information on consumer behavior in the community or to
determine the feasibility of economic enterprises (Academic)
Definition, Philosophy,
Values, Assumptions of
Community Organization
  Community organizing is one of the strategies adopted in any
community development project that requires the full
participation of the community.)

Rivera and  discuss about community organizing in a diverse society.

 Community organizing is a Western concept and has been
Erlich (1992 adopted and adapted in the context of Philippine culture.
Community development workers/community organizers must
fully understand the concept of community organizing to be able
to practice it under the Philippine sociocultural context
  “Process by which a community identifies its needs or objectives,
order (or ranks) these needs or objectives, develops confidence
and will to work at these needs or objectives, finds the resources
Ross (1955) (internal or external) to deal with these needs or objectives, takes
action in respect to them, and in so doing, extends and develops
cooperative and collaborative attitudes and practices in the
community”
Kramer and
Specht (1975)  Various methods of intervention, whereby a professional change
emphasize the role agent helps a community action system composed of individuals,
groups, or organization to engage in planned collective action in
of a professional order to deal with social problems within a democratic system of
change agent when values. It is concerned with programs aimed at social change with
they define primary reference to environmental conditions and social
institutions” (page 6)
community
organization as:
Murphy and
 a process in which local people, united by
Cunningham concern for renewing their own small territory,
(2003) plan and act together from an organizational
emphasized base that they control. It is a practice that
place-based involves collective human effort centered on
mobilization, advocating, planning, and the
community negotiation of resources”
organizing
  “Community organizing is a process that
revolves around the people’s lives, experiences,
and aspirations. It is a process that is people-
Manalili (1990 centered and geared towards [the] continuing
capability building, self-reliance, and
empowerment”
Dela Costa-
Ymson (1993) “A process of unfolding the potentialities
cites that of persons to the level where they can
community exercise the faculties that will enable
organizing as a them to create, act and manage
method is a tool for
human resources to live a decent life
development
  “the process which builds/mobilizes people and
other community resources towards
identifying and solving their own problems,
Dacanay establishing people’s self-awareness and
(1993) capacities to stage their own future...taking
action collectively considering the bureaucratic
structure and restrictive institutional
arrangements
  a major weapon of powerless communities in asserting
their demands, holding accountable those who rule
and treading their own autonomous path to
development.
 definitions highlight the nature of community
David’s (2004) organizing. It is a process by which a community
identifies its problems and finds solutions through
collective mobilization of community people and
resources. The ultimate goal/objective of community
organizing is to effect changes in social and
environmental institutions so that people can direct
their own lives.
 on the other hand defines CO as a
process of finding solutions to social
“Perlman and
problems by distributing resources,
Gurin”
functions and decision-making
power
  defines CO as the process of
matching needs with resources and
as a conscious process of social
Arthur
interaction concerned with three
Dunham
types of objectives which are • task
goals, process goals, and
relationship goals
 Integrating Ross, Dunham’s, Perlman and Gurin’s and Kramer and
Specht’s foregoing definitions with other concepts, community
organization has therefore been defined “as a method of social work
that uses the conscious process of social interaction of meeting any or
all of the following objectives:
 • the meeting of broad needs and bringing about and maintaining
adjustment between needs and resources in a community.
 • Helping people to deal more effectively with their problems, needs
and aspirations by helping them develop, strengthen and maintain
qualities of participation, selfdirection, cooperation and integration o
 Bringing about changes in community and group relationships, in
policies and in the distribution of decision making power.
 • To Summarize the CO Definitions:
 1. It deals with problem-solving in response to problems and needs.
 2. It seeks social change for the greater good.
 3. It involves the process of social interaction.
 4. It involves people’s participation in planning and implementation of
plans
  “ Acceptance of the right of the community to
decide what it wants rather than having the
Philosophy of organizer’s views imposed upon it, belief on the
capacity of the people to find richer and more
Community satisfying ways of living if they are helped to
Organization use the resources within themselves and their
environment which are and could be made
available to them
  A commitment to democratic processes and
goals
 . • The right of a client community to self
Values of determination.
Community  • Belief on the capacity of people to change.
Organization  • Belief on the innate dignity of the individual
in the community.
 • The commitment to seek social justice.
  1.Conditions for the fullest development of
individuals.
 2. Opportunities for mutual assistance
Values of common action.
Community  3. Relationships that lead to maximum
Organization cooperation and collaborations.
 4. Institutions and organizations must respond
to changing conditions by way of democratic
process.
  Changes in which individuals, groups and communities
determine their own destiny in a democratic process
have a better chance of enduring than changes that are
Assumptions imposed.
of Community  • Readiness to change is a variable which affects the
potentials and the rate of community change
Organization obtainable at a given time.
 • Skills in participating in democratic process can be
taught and learned by individuals and groups.
  Society can provide ways to achieve maximum
compatibility of individual and community
Assumptions interest. • Social welfare provisions, services
and programs can enhance human welfare and
of Community prevent and reduce social ills. • Planning,
Organization coordination and integration of social welfare
programs are by individuals, social ills are inter-
related
 • Indigenous, organized, viable groups
with attitudes and skills for planning,
implementing and evaluating socio-
General economic activities.
Objectives of
• Trained leaders with capabilities for
CO management and leadership
responsibility on a self-reliant and
sustained basis
  • The meeting of broad needs and bringing about and
maintaining adjustment between needs and resources
in a community.
Specific  • Helping people to deal more effectively with their
Objectives of problems and objectives, by helping them develop,
strengthen and maintain qualities of participation, self-
CO direction and cooperation.
 • Bringing about changes in community and group
relationships and in the distribution of decisionmaking
  • Common problems that can’t be solved on
an individual basis.
 • It will increase the people’s bargaining
power.
Reasons for  • It facilitates empowerment.
 • Systematic and end-effective delivery.
Community
 • Promote harmonious relationship
Organization between organization and agency.
 • Systematize the continuing value
education, skills training.
 • Program will be more responsive and
sustainable.
Thank you