Library Module 1 - Participation
About Participation
In this module:
-
About Participation
ParticipantsParticipation is the end point of a complex process that overcomes many individual, cultural and cost barriers.
Community development is a process of helping people to participate in the planning and delivery of their own and their community's future.
Individuals are not thought of as 'subjects' or 'targets' but rather as 'partners' and 'choice makers'.
Participation also recognises the inevitable development of conflict. Conflict is seen as an opportunity to negotiate better solutions.
Participation is a way of first meeting our own needs, then helping to meet the needs of others.
Types of participation
We often mistakenly believe that attending meetings is the only form of participation we can take. In fact, probably only about 10 to 20 per cent of people in any community like to or are able to attend meetings.
Participation has many faces. Anyone who is affected by an issue has a right to be involved in its solution. If you are asking individuals to participate, you must provide access to participation, and recognise and value the many different ways that participation occurs.
Participation can be thought of as both 'active' and 'passive'. Active participation is being involved in the decision making of a community group or organisation and/or being involved through directly providing a service. This can include attending meetings, providing support so others can attend meetings, doing some of the work after decisions have been made, answering questionnaires, or providing information to assist others in decision making.
Passive participation refers to things like financial support, attending events and functions or even reading a newsletter and acting on it.
Communities benefit from both types of participation and both types should be valued. However, active participation is often more rewarding for individuals and organisations.
Encouraging Participation
A SIMPLE Formula
Active participation can be built from the ground up in small steps or by supporting individual action within a larger group. If people are to become involved and then get on with the job, they must be interested in what they are working on, feel they are trusted, have power to act and be able to see some progress.
People should have an opportunity to fulfil their aspirations in co-operation with others, rather than have their aspirations compromised and merely obey the group.
The SIMPLE formula provides a way of initiating and/or nurturing individual active participation.
Small groups
People work best and more naturally when working in small groups of two to five people. Groups this size provide opportunities for skill sharing, socialising, risk-taking, sharing responsibility, decision making and getting things done.
Interest-based
Organising small groups around things, which are of real interest to participants, right now, heightens motivation and the degree to which people are prepared to take responsibility.
Meaningful outcomes
Ensuring that involvement will yield an individual or small group 'win', also helps with motivation and maintains participants' interest. To ensure meaningful outcomes, it is essential that decision making that leads to that outcome is owned by, and fully involves, the participants.
Personal contact
Friendship is a key to motivation. Being able to establish relationships with the 'people who matter' (eg the workers, leaders, committee and other significant people) and with people of like mind, makes involvement count at a very personal level.
Loose structures
Having a loose structure is the exact opposite of having a sloppy, unclear structure. To become involved people need to know where they stand, what the lines of communication and power are, and above all, how to move about in the organisation. People fear making permanent commitments and hate making leaps into the unknown. A loose structure is one which allows people to choose the level of involvement which suits them, allows them to move into and out of varying levels of involvement and which never says 'you're either in or you're out'.
Easily accessible
Accessibility is lots of things: physical access, language, literacy, payment of out-of-pocket expenses, transport, appropriate hours, child care, training, clarity of expectations, a sense of my space and a useable complaints system.
Finding and Losing Participants
Finding Participants
Networks are often thought of as useful for organisations and for workers. Networks also link individuals to their community and to each other.
If you have a small group, think about the group as the tip of the iceberg. By mapping each person's individual network (ie who they know), both socially and organisationally, you may find that six people from a small community may in fact have access to much of the population!
Think about who isn't there and who should/could be involved. How can you make contact with them? Who has a personal or business relationship with them? What actions will you take to make participating easier for them?
Each person at the meeting can take on a personal commitment to inform and involve others where possible. Never underestimate the power of a personal approach.
The development and support of individual networks is based on understanding that it is the relationship that is important. Trust, credibility, industry, support, care, generosity and understanding are ends in themselves.
Organisations or communities might like to think of their networks in the following way:
-
Constituency networks are people or organisations that are members of your group, are represented by group members or have similar goals or interests.
-
Resources networks are people or organisations that can support group activities with funds, grants programs or other support in kind.
-
Legitimacy networks are people or organisations whose recognition supports the credibility of the group. This may include government departments, political representatives, peak bodies etc.
-
Publicity networks are people or organisations that can help spread information concerning the groups and its aims eg. local newspaper reporters etc.
-
Action coalitions are drawn at need or interest from the other networks to work on a particular project.
Losing Participants
People can stop participating for many reasons.
A checklist of questions may help you find out why people have left. [PDF] [Word]
Tools
Link to useful tools on this module.
Other languages