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Community Action and Research as Citizenship Construction
Author(s) -
Montero Maritza
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
american journal of community psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.113
H-Index - 112
eISSN - 1573-2770
pISSN - 0091-0562
DOI - 10.1007/s10464-008-9224-6
Subject(s) - citizenship , solidarity , sociology , politics , action (physics) , participatory action research , community psychology , negotiation , poverty , environmental ethics , social psychology , law , political science , social science , psychology , philosophy , physics , quantum mechanics , anthropology
Social change, well‐being and liberation have been intertwined in community research and action, as much as being used as political common‐places. In this paper, it is argued that community research and action can have a political character. The epistemological premises shared by both the community and political spheres are discussed, and concepts are defined. The way community psychological action can produce changes is illustrated by an experience carried out with children from poverty sectors of Caracas, Venezuela, intended to construct citizenship by developing awareness about values, civic rights and duties, while experiencing the advantages of participation, peaceful negotiation and solidarity, during art classes. Topics regarding citizenship values and ethics were painted and discussed in a participatory way. Results about how the children developed consciousness about those topics, relating them to their lives, are presented.