Part 1: Theoretical foundations of community work
1. The practice of community work in contemporary Australia
The use of the term ‘community work’
The values and principles that underpin community work practice
How is community work understood in contemporary Australia?
The use of the term ‘community’ in contemporary society
Rationales for community work
The way forward for community work
2. Contemporary contextual influences on community work practice in Australia
The context of community work in contemporary Australia
Key contextual influences
Deficit policy approaches
The availability of on-line technology in community work and the rise of online advocacy
3. What is community? Elements of community structure and functioning
Understanding community: A sociological perspective
Community as locality and interactions
Community of interest
Community as a social system
On-line communities
Elements of structure and functioning of communities
4. Community: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander perspective
Introduction
White constructions of ‘community’
An Aboriginal concept of community
New ways of working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities
5. Why do communities act?
Communities taking action
Factors that might lead to communities taking effective action
Part 2: Practice frameworks and conceptual approaches to working with communities
6. Conceptual approaches to community work
Conceptual approaches for community work practice
A typology of four conceptual approaches to community work
The contributions approach
The instrumental approach
The community empowerment approach
The developmental approach to community work
7. Practice frameworks for working with communities
Reflexive practice and ethical issues in working with communities
Interactional community development practice framework
Building capable communities for health promotion
The assets-based community development approach (ABCD)
Culturally dynamic partnerships (CDP)
8. Government roles in working with communities
Government roles in community work
Government practice in supporting community sustainability
Government social policy agendas: Social inclusion
Role of government in program and service development
Government-led community engagement
9. Roles of the non-government sector in working with communities
The roles of the non-government sector
Types of non-government organisations
The government–NGOs relationship in service provision
Deciding who should provide services and programs
The future of volunteers in the non-government sector in community work
Part 3: Practical applications and processes in working with communities
10. Community decision making
Participative community decision-making
Key principles of participative decision-making
Structures for decision-making
Techniques for community involvement in decision-making
11. Partnerships in working with communities
Defining our terms
The rationale for partnerships
Key principles for effective partnership working
Within sector, across sector, and bridging community partnerships
Partnership beginnings and endings
Partnership strengthening
12. Community participation: a global perspective
Background to community participation practice
Revitalising community participation
Community participation: A global perspective
Practising community participation: Key principles
13. Understanding and assessing community capacity
Defining community capacity
Community strength
Indigenous understandings of community capacity
Methods of assessing and developing community capacity
Community capitals and community sustainability
Strategies to develop entrepreneurial social infrastructure
14. Community leadership
What is community leadership?
The relational approach to community leadership
Gender and community leadership
Some challenges of community leadership
Community leadership skills
Developing community leadership
15. Community planning
What do we mean by community planning?
Key activities in community planning
Three examples of community planning
Community recovery planning
Techniques for gathering information for community planning
16. Building knowledge about working with communities
Developing informed practice
Areas in which research and evaluation are valuable
Ethical research practice
Research partnerships
