Problem
Reluctance to join in community action
Experimental visualization of narrower problems
Other Names:
Discouraged citizen participationReluctant personal participation
Unrecognized benefits from corporate action
Nature:
Many small communities are reluctant to work together for the betterment of the entire population. This may be due to several reasons: there is often a sense that the issues are too complex to be solved; individuals may be reluctant to relinquish their personal power; sometimes there is a belief that those who were capable of dealing with the problems have already left the community for more fulfilling avenues, and that those who remain have neither the imagination nor the energy demanded for community action; past development efforts may have been left unfinished, reinforcing the sense that little can change. Suggestions for development tend to meet with a negative response - reasons why such a thing could not work, or why the community is not in a position to approach public or private sources for assistance. There is therefore a need to try new alternatives in total community development able to meet perceived needs and to mobilize the community's latent human resources. Broader Problems:
Thwarted community enthusiasmDecline in civic participationUnformed pattern of cooperative actionStructural failure of citizen participationDisengagement of citizens from community activities Narrower Problems:
Mistrust of strangersResignation to problemsEntrapping social contextUnassessed corporate needsFear blocking participationNegative identifying slogansStifled emerging leadershipDisunified requests for servicesApparently unrewarded initiativesInfrequent discussion opportunitiesDisputed desirability of institutionsUnmeaningful social roles for the agedDistrust of interpersonal relationshipsComplex interrelationship of world problemsIneffectiveness of individual participation in large communitiesLack of participation from local communities in democratic processes Related Problems:
Unchallenging world visionMaldistribution of agricultural land Aggravates:
Fragmented social responsibilityFailure of development programmesInadequate care of community spaceDelays in community building programmesGovernment imposition of rural cooperative projects Strategies:
Ensuring social participationEnsuring social participationJoining in community actionEncouraging citizen participation Subject(s):
Action → Action Society → Communities
Social Activity → Participation
Government → Citizenship
Value Redistribution → Cooperative
Related UN Sustainable Development Goals:
Problem Type:
F: Fuzzy exceptional problems Date of last update
16.02.1999 – 00:00 CET