The Palgrave Handbook of Innovative Community and Clinical Psychologies

This handbook showcases innovative clinical and critical community psychology projects that move from individualizing to contextualizing practices, addressing political, social, and economic injustices. It rejects psychologizing and promotes action-oriented and social justice-focused approaches, subverting traditional boundaries to engage with human rights, creativity, political activism, social change, and more.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 675 pages
Publication date: 03 February 2023
Publisher: Springer Nature Switzerland AG

This comprehensive handbook showcases a diverse array of groundbreaking, radical, and liberatory clinical and critical community psychology projects from across the globe. The fields of critical community psychology and clinical psychology are currently undergoing transformative innovations, characterized by a shift from an individualizing practice realm to a more contextualizing orientation. Both disciplines are responding to a wide range of political, social, and economic injustices, as well as a global political context. Community and clinical psychologists have been compelled to reorient their practice to confront, resist, and subvert the structures that perpetuate harm and vulnerability among the individuals they work with. This text argues that these approaches challenge and undermine the psychologizing that has reinforced oppressive systems. Such practices are beginning to engage in the political nature of power-knowledge relationships, calling for a more "action-oriented" and less "clinical psychology praxis." There is a growing interest and commitment to social justice within the field of mental well-being, and this collection explores and documents those practices where the traditional boundaries of community and clinical psychology have been subverted, altered, stretched, changed, and reworked to reframe practice around human rights, creativity, political activism, social change, space and place, systemic violence, community transformation, resource allocation, and radical practices of disruption and direct action.

Introduction:
In recent years, there has been a growing recognition of the need to address social, political, and economic inequalities that impact the well-being of individuals and communities. This has led to a resurgence of interest in the fields of clinical and critical community psychology, which are dedicated to promoting social justice, equity, and well-being. This handbook aims to showcase a range of innovative and transformative projects that have been undertaken by scholars, activists, and practitioners in these fields.

Critical Community Psychology:
Critical community psychology is a subfield of psychology that emphasizes the importance of social justice, equity, and community empowerment in the practice of psychology. It seeks to challenge the dominant narratives and power structures that perpetuate inequality and oppression, and to promote a more inclusive and equitable society. Critical community psychologists work to address a wide range of issues, including poverty, racism, discrimination, violence, and mental health.

One of the key approaches of critical community psychology is the use of participatory action research (PAR) to engage communities in the development and implementation of solutions to their problems. PAR involves community members in the research process, from identifying the problem to developing and evaluating solutions. This approach not only empowers communities but also helps to build capacity and resilience within them.

Another important aspect of critical community psychology is the use of cultural competence and diversity to promote equity and well-being. Cultural competence involves understanding and respecting the cultural backgrounds, beliefs, and practices of individuals and communities. It involves recognizing the impact of social determinants
inequalities on mental health and well-being, and developing interventions that are tailored to meet the unique needs of diverse populations.

Clinical Psychology:
Clinical psychology is a subfield of psychology that focuses on the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of mental health disorders. It is a mainstream discipline that has traditionally been focused on individualistic approaches to treatment. However, there has been a growing movement within clinical psychology to move towards a more contextualizing orientation that recognizes the importance of social, political, and economic factors in mental health.

One of the key approaches of clinical psychology that is moving towards a more contextualizing orientation is the use of community-based mental health services. Community-based mental health services involve the delivery of mental health services in community settings, such as schools, community centers, and housing projects. These services are designed to address the unique needs of communities and to promote mental health and well-being at the community level.

Another important aspect of clinical psychology that is moving towards a more contextualizing orientation is the use of trauma-informed care. Trauma-informed care involves the recognition of the impact of trauma on mental health and the development of interventions that are tailored to meet the unique needs of individuals who have experienced trauma. Trauma-informed care recognizes the importance of cultural competence and diversity in the treatment of trauma, and seeks to promote healing and recovery in a safe and supportive environment.

Conclusion:
In conclusion, the fields of critical community psychology and clinical psychology are undergoing transformative innovations that are moving towards a more contextualizing orientation. These approaches are responding to a wide range of political, social, and economic injustices, as well as a global political context. By engaging communities in the research process, using cultural competence and diversity to promote equity and well-being, and using community-based mental health services to address the unique needs of communities, these approaches are working to promote social justice, equity, and well-being at the individual, community, and societal levels.

Weight: 1050g
Dimension: 235 x 155 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9783030711924
Edition number: 1st ed. 2022