Assessing ‘empowerment’ as social development: goal and process

Power, Empowerment and Social Participation- the Building of a Conceptual Model

“…The capacity to act and to exercise power, that is to say, the development and the struggle against inequality, are simultaneously a condition and a product of empowerment (Albuquerque et al, 2016). This is a strategy through which individuals, not presently participating, can promote significant social reform that will allow them to share benefits that involve society to a greater extent (Arnstein, 2002).…”

“…In this respect, if we consider that empowerment is a process which aims to strengthen a group's capacity to make intentional choices and to transform these choices into actions and produce the results desired by the individual, it then becomes necessary to examine not only the capacity to act but also the prospects for transforming the choices into results (Albuquerque, Santos & Almeida, 2016).…”

Power, Empowerment and Social Participation- the Building of a Conceptual Model

“…The literature also emphasizes that the development of critical awareness is an essential component in empowerment, which in practice is considered the product of a dialectic between action and reflection and comprises three paths: 1) development of a collective awareness in which the individual is not the only person to have a problem; 2) development of social consciousness, that is to say, social and collective problems are influenced by social organization; 3) development of political consciousness within the mind-set that the solution to problems requires social change. In this respect, if we consider that empowerment is a process which aims to strengthen a group's capacity to make intentional choices and to transform these choices into actions and produce the results desired by the individual, it then becomes necessary to examine not only the capacity to act but also the prospects for transforming the choices into results (Albuquerque, Santos & Almeida, 2016).…”

“…Empowerment, more than a self-legitimized buzzword, may well be considered an operational tool for monitoring social interventions and the resulting transformation, thus contributing to the effectiveness of practices and the underpinnings of an actual theory of social change. (Albuquerque, Santos & Almeida, 2016).…”

Are housing and neighbourhood empowerment beneficial for mental health and wellbeing? Evidence from disadvantaged communities experiencing regeneration

“…In their development of a conceptual model for ‘empowerment as a strategic process of intervention’, Cavalieri and Almeida (2018) stipulate that competencies and critical awareness are functional at the three levels of individual, community and organisation. Deciding refers to being in the position, or having the opportunity, to make choices for one's community, Achieving is the ability to institute actions (directly or indirectly) in order to implement the decisions made and convert choices into outcomes ( Albuquerque et al, 2016 ). These components combine to result in three types of empowerment outcome: psychological (feeling empowered), political (being party to decision-making) and practical (changing things in a desired direction) ( Lawson & Kearns, 2014 ).…”