Email this article Community psychology, happiness and the third industrial revolution
Abstract
This contribution offers a theoretical and socio-political reflection of the meaning of happiness in times of crisis and explores the role of Community Psychology as a key and proactive approach to understanding human relationships and planning suitable transformations. We will explore the main social inequalities emerging nowadays in Europe, such as the suffering welfare state, beginning with the heated debate emerging over the last decade among epidemiologists, sociologist and economists. We imagine possible ways out following Rifkin and his theory about the third industrial revolution, which moves towards the empathy economy, requiring high levels of participation, involvement of all social actors, and new attitudes in decision makers and citizens. Proximity plays a relevant importance: cooperation with neighbours becomes a strategic asset for better living conditions such as, being both producers and users of social services. This paper proposes three areas of action: the social capital; the enterprise as a social factor, not only economical – resource producer (and we refer to Olivetti, an Italian entrepreneur famous for his anticipatory vision and relationship between local and global, and his building, not only of an innovative enterprise but also of a new community setting); and the local government and the role of policy makers. These areas may be explored to generate strategies of intervention thanks to Community Psychology, which enables the provision a sound theoretical and methodological framework so as to move towards collective well-being and happiness.
References
Adjei-Bosompem, E. (2013). Micro-credit lending and women’s empowerment: The experiences of rural Kasoa women. The Journal of Global Gender Studies, 1(1), 1–31.
Arcidiacono, C. (2013). Benessere e felicità: uscire dalla crisi globale [Wellbeing and happiness: Out of the global crisis]. Pomigliano d’Arco, Italy: Diogene Edizioni.
Bartolini, S. (2010). Manifesto per la felicità [Manifesto for happiness]. Roma, Italy: Donzelli.
Bartolini, S. & Sarracino, F., (2015). The dark side of Chinese growth: Declining social capital and well-being in times of economic boom. World Development, 74, 333–351. doi:10.1016/j.worlddev.2015.05.010
Brennan, A. (2015). Olivetti: A work of art in the age of immaterial labour. Journal of Design History, 28(3), 235–253.
Brown, R. (1988). Group processes: Dynamics within and between groups. Oxford, UK: Blackwell Publishers.
Candeloro, G. (1996). Storia dell'Italia moderna. Vol. VIII: La prima guerra mondiale, il dopoguerra, l'avvento del fascismo [History of modern Italy. Vol. VIII: First world war, post-war period, and Fascism’s rise to power]. Milano, Italy: Feltrinelli.
Capecchi, S., & Piccolo, D. (2013). Modelli e metodi per la misura della felicità: alcune evidenze empiriche [Models and methods for measuring happiness: some empirical evidence]. In C. Arcidiacono, (Ed.), Benessere e felicità: uscire dalla crisi globale. (pp. 283–306). Pomigliano d’Arco, Italy: Diogene Edizioni.
Christens, B.D. (2012). Toward relational empowerment. American Journal of Community Psychology, 50(1), 114–128.
Cicognani, E. (2012). Il benessere della comunità [Community well-being]. In B. Zani (Ed.), Psicologia di comunità. Prospettive, idee, metodi (pp. 195–221). Roma, Italy: Carocci
Coleman, E. A., Whitelaw, N.A., & Schreiber, R. (2014). Caring for seniors: How community-based organizations can help. Family Practice Management, 21(5), 13–7.
Condor, S. (2011). Towards a social psychology of citizenship? Journal of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 21(3), 193–201.
Cook, J.R., & Kilmer, R.P. (2012). Systems of care: New partnerships for community psychology. American Journal of Community Psychology, 49(3-4), 393–403.
Delhey, J., & Dragolov, G. (2014). Why inequality makes Europeans less happy: The role of distrust, status anxiety, and perceived conflict. European Sociological Review, 30(2), 151–165.
DeNeve, K.M., & Cooper, H. (1998). The happy personality: A meta-analysis of 137 personality traits and subjective well-being. Psychological Bulletin, 124(2), 197–229.
De Piccoli, N. (2014). Salute e qualità della vita nella società del benessere [Health and quality of life in welfare society]. Roma, Italy: Carocci Editore.
Diamond, P., & Lodge, G. (2013). European welfare states after the crisis. Policy Network Papers. Retrieved from http://observgo.uquebec.ca/observgo/fichiers/31648_crisis.pdf
Diener, E. (1984). Subjective well-being. Psychological Bulletin, 95, 542-575.
Diener, E. (1994). Assessing subjective well-being: Progress and opportunities. Social indicators research, 31(2), 103–157.
Diener, E., Lucas, R.E., & Oishi, S. (2002). Subjective well-being: The Science of happiness and life satisfaction. In C.R. Snyder & S.J. Lopez (Eds.), Handbook of positive psychology (63–73). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Fay, A.J., & Maner, J.K. (2012). Warmth, spatial proximity, and social attachment: The embodied perception of a social metaphor. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 48(6), 1369–1372.
Ferrera, M., Fargion, V., & Jessoula, M. (2012). Alle radici del welfare all'italiana: origini e futuro di un modello sociale squilibrato [Exploring Italian welfare to the root: Origins and future prospects of an unbalanced social model]. Venezia, Italy: Marsilio.
Foster-Fishman, P.G., Nowell, B., & Yang, H. (2007). Putting the system back into systems change: A framework for understanding and changing organizational and community systems, American Journal of Community Psychology, 39(3-4), 197–215.
Francescato, D. (1977). Psicologia di comunità [Community psychology]. Milano, Italy: Feltrinelli.
Freire, P. (1970). Pedagogy of the oppressed. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books.
Fryer, D. (2011). Inequality and research from a community critical psychology standpoint. In Serdar M.D. (Ed.), Some still more equal than others? Or equal opportunities for all? (pp. 17-28). Strasbourg Cedex, France: Council of Europe Publishing.
Giovannini, E., & Rondinella, T. (2012). Measuring equitable and sustainable wellbeing in Italy. In F. Maggino & G. Nuvolati (Eds.), Quality of life in Italy: Research and reflections. New York, NY: Springer.
Gurr, T.R. (1970). Why men rebel. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.
Health in the European Union (2015). Facts and figures is a Eurostat online publication. Retrieved from http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php/Health_in_the_European_Union_%E2%80%93_facts_and_figures
Himmelman, A.T. (2001). On coalitions and the transformation of power relations: Collaborative betterment and collaborative empowerment. American Journal of Community Psychology, 29(2), 277–284.
Kabeer, N. (2012). Women’s economic empowerment and inclusive growth: Labour markets and enterprise development. International Development Research Centre. Retrieved from https://www.soas.ac.uk/cdpr/publications/papers/file80432.pdf
Kagan, C., Burton, M., Duckett, P., Lawthom R., & Siddiquee A., (2011). Critical community psychology. West Sussex, UK: Wiley-Blackwell.
Kahneman, D., & Krueger, A.B. (2006). Developments in the measurement of subjective well-being. The Journal of Economic Perspectives, 20(1), 3–24.
Kahneman, D., Diener, E., & Schwarz, N. (1999). Well-being: The foundations of hedonic psychology. New York, NY: Russell Sage Foundation.
Keyes, C. L. M. (1998). Social well-being. Social Psychology Quarterly, 61(2), 121–140.
Kloos, B., Hill, J., Thomas, E., Wandersman, A., Elias, M. J., & Dalton, J. H. (2012). Community psychology: Linking individuals and communities (3rd ed.). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.
Kumar, S., Calvo, R., Avendano, M., Sivaramakrishnan, K., & Berkman, L.F. (2012). Social support, volunteering and health around the world: Cross-national evidence from 139 countries. Social Science & Medicine, 74(5), 696–706.
Laverack, G. (2001). An identification and interpretation of the organizational aspects of community empowerment. Community Development Journal, 36(2), 134–145.
Lewin, K. (1951). Field theory in social science. New York, NY: Harper & Row.
Lubitz, J., Cai, L., Kramarow, E., & Lentzner, H. (2003). Health, life expectancy, and health care spending among the elderly. The New England Journal of Medicine, 349, 1048–1055. doi:10.1056/NEJMsa020614
Maalouf, A. (2009). Le dérèglement du monde. Paris, France: Grasset.
Maciocco, G., & Santomauro, F. (2014). La salute globale. Determinanti sociali e disuguaglianze [Global health: Social determinants and inequalities]. Roma, Italy: Carocci Faber.
Maier, S. F., & Seligman, M. E. (1976). Learned helplessness: Theory and evidence. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 105(1), 3–46.
Mair, H. (2006). The potential of interdisciplinarity for leisure research. Leisure Sciences, 28(2), 197–202.
Martini, R., & Botazzoli, P. (2012). Abitare sociale: contesti e persone [Social dwelling: Contexts and people]. Psicologia di Comunità, 2, 47–57. doi:10.3280/PSC2012-002005
Meringolo, P. (2011). La valutazione in un'ottica di psicologia di comunità: alcuni nodi critici e specificità dell'intervento sulle marginalità [Community psychology assessment: Critical aspects and peculiarity of the interventions on social marginality]. In S. Bertoletti, P. Meringolo, M. Stagnitta, & G. Zuffa (Eds), Terre di confine. Soggetti, modelli, esperienze dei servizi a bassa soglia (pp. 107–126). Milano, Italy: Unicopli.
Montero, M. (2009). Methods for liberation: Critical consciousness in action. In M. Montero & C.C. Sonn (Eds.), Psychology of liberation (pp. 73–91). New York, NY: Springer.
Prewitt, K., Schwandt, T.A., & Straf, M.L. (2012). Using science as evidence in public policy. Committee on the use of social science knowledge in public policy. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press.
Nunziata, M. (2013). Pensare e misurare il benessere. Una ricerca in un comune campano [Envisaging and measuring well-being. A fieldwork in a Campania district]. In C. Arcidiacono. Benessere e felicità: uscire dalla crisi globale. (307–330). Pomigliano d’Arco, Italy: Diogene Edizioni.
Olivetti, A. (2014). L’ordine politico delle comunità [Communities political order] (D. Cadeddu Vers.). Milano, Italy: Edizioni di Comunità.
Orford, J. (2008). Community psychology: Challenges, controversies and emerging consensus. Chichester, UK: John Wiley & Sons.
Paraponaris, A., Davin, B., & Verger, P. (2012). Formal and informal care for disabled elderly living in the community: An appraisal of French care composition and costs. The European Journal of Health Economics, 13(3), 327–336.
Peterson, C., & Seligman, M.E.P. (2004). Character strengths and virtues: A handbook and classification. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Pike, K.L. (1954). Emic and etic standpoints for the description of behavior language in relation to unified theory of the structure of human behavior. The Hague, The Netherlands: Mouton.
Poortinga, W. (2012). Community resilience and health: The role of bonding, bridging, and linking aspects of social capital. Health & Place, 18(2), 286–295.
Porter, M.E., & Kramer, M.R. (2011). Creating shared value. Harvard Business Review, 89(1-2), 62–77.
Prilleltensky, I. (2008). The role of power in wellness, oppression, and liberation: The promise of psychopolitical validity. Journal of Community Psychology, 36(2), 116–136.
Prilleltensky, I. (2012). Wellness as fairness. American Journal of Community Psychology, 49(1-2), 1–21.
Rappaport, J. (1977). Community psychology: Values, research, and action. New York, NY: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
Rifkin, J. (2009). The empathic civilization: The race to global consciousness in a world in crisis. New York, NY: Penguin.
Ryff, C.D. (1989). Happiness is everything, or is it? Explorations on the meaning of psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 57(6), 1069–1081.
Ryff, C.D., & Keyes, C.L. (1995). The structure of psychological well-being revisited. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 69(4), 719–727.
Salanova, M., Rodríguez-Sánchez, A.M., Schaufeli, W.B., & Cifre, E. (2014). Flowing together: A longitudinal study of collective efficacy and collective flow among workgroups. The Journal of Psychology, 148(4), 435–455.
Sanyal, P. (2009). From credit to collective action: The role of microfinance in promoting women's social capital and normative influence. American Sociological Review, 74(4), 529–550.
Saunders, P. (2010). Beware false prophets. Equality, the good society and the spirit level. London, UK: Policy Exchange.
Scott, J. (2012). Social network analysis. (3rd ed.). London, UK: Sage.
Seligman, M.E.P., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: An introduction. American Psychologist, 55(1), 5–14.
Sen, A. (1992). Inequality re-examined. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Sen, A. (2014). Collective choice and social welfare (Vol. 11). Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Elsevier.
Sen, A., & Piatti, L. (2005). Il tenore di vita. Tra benessere e libertà [Life standard between well-being and freedom]. Venice, Italy: Marsilio.
Sen, A., (2002). Globalizzazione e libertà [Globalisation and freedom]. Milan, Italy: Mondadori.
Snowdon, C. (2010). The spirit level delusion: Fact checking the left’s new theory of everything. Ripon, UK: Little Dice.
Strack, F., Argyle, M., & Schwarz, N. (1991). Subjective well-being. An interdisciplinary perspective. Oxford, UK: Pergamon Press.
Volpi, C. (2011). Dalla cittadinanza responsabile al capitale di prossimità. Dialoghi. Rivista di studi sulla formazione e sullo sviluppo organizzativo, 2, 1–8. Retrieved from http://www.dialoghi.org/files/Dialoghi_Volpi_2_2011_con_prefazione.pdf
Watzlawick, P., Weakland, J.H., & Fish, R. (1974). Change: Principles of problem formation and problem solution. New York, NY, Norton & Co.
Wilkinson, R.G. (1996). Unhealthy societies: From inequality to well-being. London, UK: Routledge.
Wilkinson, R.G., & Pickett, K. (2009). The spirit level: Why more equal societies almost always do better. London, UK: Penguin.
Zanini, A. (2015). Sicurezza sociale. Un paradigma politico per il Welfare State [Social security. A political paradigm for welfare systems]. Filosofia politica, 29(3), 421–438.
Zimmerman, M.A., & Rappaport, J. (1988). Citizen participation, perceived control, and psychological empowerment. American Journal of Community Psychology, 16(5), 725–750.
Full Text: PDF
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.
