With Community Psychology, International Edition, Kloos, Hill, Thomas, Wandersman, and Dalton have addressed the challenge of transforming an abstract, theoretical topic into a lively and understandable subject for students. Through concrete examples and consistent pedagogy, this text helps students understand the concepts as well as how to apply them. After introducing community psychology and its history, the authors describe methods of community research and discuss how to understand communities from the perspectives of sense of community, coping, and social support. The focus then shifts to community programs and actions: preventing problem behavior and promoting social competence, citizen participation, organizing for community and social change, and program evaluation and development.

The fourth edition of this acclaimed textbook provides an in-depth and engaging overview of community psychology, including its theoretical underpinnings and methods for conducting research and promoting change within communities. This book aims to get students, including nonpsychology majors, excited about the field and being agents of social change. New to this edition are an increased focus on values, particularly those related to social justice, empowering minority communities, and solving complex societal problems - like poverty, oppression, and climate change - across multiple ecological levels. New research and case examples present important developments in the field and society at large, accompanied by extensive discussion questions that will encourage self-reflection and help students apply key concepts to their own lives. A new marginal glossary also highlights important concepts.

Mental health practices and programs around the world face growing criticism from policymakers, consumers, and service providers for being ineffective, overly reliant on treatment by professionals, and overly focused on symptoms. Many have called for new paradigms of mental health and new practices that can better support recovery, community integration, and adaptive functioning for persons diagnosed with psychiatric disabilities. While there has recently been much discourse about transformation and recovery, there has yet to be a critical and systematic review that unpacks the concept of mental health systems transformation or that examines strategies for how to create transformative change in mental health.
Community Psychology and Community Mental Health provides empirical justification and a conceptual foundation for transformative change in mental health, based on community psychology values and principles of ecology, collaboration, empowerment, and social justice. Chapters provide strategies for making changes at the level of society, policy, organizations, community settings, and mental health practices. The editors and authors draw from experience in different countries in recognition of the need to tailor change strategies to different contexts. The common experiences of the international perspectives represented underscore the importance and the need for a new paradigm while demonstrating that there are many alternatives and opportunities for pursuing transformative change. This book will be of interest to community mental health professionals, researchers, and students, as well as policymakers, administrators, and those with lived experience of mental health issues.