Psychology Community

Critically compare and contrast the community psychology and public health approaches to social problems

Introduction

Community Psychology and Public Health share many of the same methods theories, topics and values. According to Mark Zimmerman (http://www.answers.com)

The central focus of both is focusing more on prevention rather than cure. Lets first look at both separately and get a better understanding of the origins and historical developments, thereafter we will move on to discuss how they compliment and differ from each other looking at their strengths and weaknesses. Community psychology originates from mental reform movements in the United States of America, with all these movements focus primarily being on treating mental illness as a social rather than individual problem according to the Tutorial Letter 102 for PYC4811 (2011)

Community Psychology was labelled a separate discipline in Boston at the 1965 Swampscott Conference, with the focus on social behaviour and mental health. Community Psychology moved on to being a discipline that examines ecological issues beyond the individual level and explores the value of diversity, as well as seeing psychologists as valid agents of social change. According to Mark Zimmerman (http://www.answers.com)

In South Africa Community Psychology first gained currency in 1980s, this was primarily due to the need to find help in alleviating the powerlessness that psychologists felt during times of political upheaval. Community Psychology has four models, of which only two will be of concern in this essay. The Mental Health Model and the Social Action Model represent the opposing views of Community psychology. According to Tutorial Letter 102 for PYC4811 (2011)

Public Health which is used in industrialised countries is based on western or a biomedical model of illness. This means that disease and distress are caused by lesions in the body or mind and are caused by the interaction with the...