Empowerment effect of self-help group participation in a Chinese context

Journal of Social Service Research

Volumn 32, Issue 3, 2006, Pages 87-108

  Mok, Bong Ho ^a   Cheung, Yuet W ^a   Cheung, Tak Sing ^a  

^a CHINESE UNIVERSITY OF HONG KONG   (Hong Kong)

Author keywords

Hong Kong; Personal empowerment; Self help group benefits; Self help group participation; Social capital

Indexed keywords

EID: 33750213854     PISSN: 01488376     EISSN: 15407314     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1300/J079v32n03_05     Document Type: Article

References (47)

1. Berger, P.L. & Neuhaus, R.J. (1977). To Empower People: The Role of Mediating Structures in Public Policy. Washington, DC: American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research.
2. Bourdieu, P. (1986). The forms of capital. In: Richardson, J. Editor. Handbook of Theory and Research for the Sociology of Education, New York: Greenwood Press, 241-258.
3. Caplan, R.D. (1979). Social support, person-environment fit and loving. In L.A. Ferman & J.P. Gordus (Eds.), Mental Health and the Economy. Kalamazoo, MI: Upjohn Institute.
4. Chan, C. (1991). The myth of self-help and family involvement: The case of services for persons with mental retardation. Hong Kong Journal of Social Work, 25, 23-29.
5. Chan, C., Ho J., Chan, M. & Ng H.S. (1996). Evaluation Report and Study on Quality of Life of Persons with Chronic Illness of Community Rehabilitation Network. Hong Kong: Department of Social Work and Social Administration, HKU & CRN, Hong Kong Society for Rehabilitation.
6. Chau, K.L. (1996). Collective empowerment: The heart of a new partnership between social service agencies and self help organizations. In Proceedings of the 1995 Regional Social Services Conference (245-249). Christchurch, New Zealand: Department of Social Work, University of Canterbury.
7. Chavis, D.M. & Wandersman, A. (1990). Sense of community in the urban environment: A catalyst for participation and community development. American Journal of Community Psychology, 18, 55-81.
8. Chesler, M.A. (1991). Mobilizing consumer activism in health care: The role of self-help groups. Research in Social Movements, Conflicts and Change, 13, 275-305.
9. Cheung, Y.L. & Ng, K.T. (1989). Organizing single parent mutual-aid groups. In C. Chan and A. Yeung (Eds.), Community Work-Practice of Community Care (127-137). Hong Kong: Hong Kong Social Workers Association.
10. Cheung, Y.W. & Cheung, N.W.T. (2003). Social capital and risk level of posttreatment drug use: Implications for harm reduction among male treated addicts in Hong Kong. Addiction Research and Theory, 11(3), 145-162.
11. Chow, N. (1996). Welfare development in non-governmental organizations (1977-1995). In Special Issues on 45th Anniversary of Hong Kong Social Workers Association (33-35). Hong Kong: Hong Kong Social Workers Association.
12. Citron, M., Solomon, P. & Draine, J. (1999). Self-help groups for families of persons with mental illness: Perceived benefits of helpfulness. Community Mental Health Journal, 35(1), 12-30.
13. Coleman, J. (1988). Social capital in the creation of human capital. American Journal of Sociology, 98, S95-S120.
14. Coleman, J. (1990). Foundations of Social Theory, Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
15. Cronbach, L.J. (1951). Coefficient alpha and the internal structure of tests. Psychometrika, 16, 297-334.
16. Florin, P.R. & Wandersman, A. (1984). Cognitive social learning and participation in community development. American Journal of Community Psychology, 12(6), 689-708.
17. Granovetter, M. (1985). Economic action, social structure, and embeddedness. American Journal of Sociology, 91, 481-510.
18. Hagan, J., MacMillan, R. & Wheaton, B. (1996). New kid in town: social capital and the life course effects of family migration on children. American Sociological Review, 61, 368-385.
19. Hagan, J. & McCarthy, B. (1997). Mean Streets: Youth Crime and Homelessness, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
20. Itzhaky, H. & Schwartz, C. (1998). Empowering the disabled: A multidimensional approach. International Journal of Rehabilitation Research, 21, 301-310.
21. Itzhaky, H. & York, A.S. (2000). Empowerment and community participation: Does gender make a difference? Social Work Research, 24(4), 225-234.
22. Kawachi, I., Kennedy, B.P. & Glass, R. (1999). Social capital and self-rated health: a contextual analysis. American Journal of Public Health, 89(8), 1187-1193.
23. Ko, C.H.T. & Chang, P.L.E. (1994). Being helped through helping: A self-help group for abused women in Hong Kong. In Casebook of Innovative Attempts in Social Work Intervention (210-224). Hong Kong: Hong Kong Council of Social Service.
24. Lawson, T. & Garrord, J. (2001). Dictionary of Sociology. London: Fitzroy Dearborn.
25. Liu, E. (1997). Self-help groups for parents of children with Cooley's Anaemia. In C. Chan & N. Rhind (Eds.), Social Work Intervention in Health Care: The Hong Kong Scene (296-314). Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press.
26. Lomas, J. (1998). Social capital and health: Implications for public health and epidemiology. Social Science and Medicine, 47(9), 1181-1188.
27. Lyons, M., Smots, C. & Stephens, A. (2001). Participation, empowerment and sustainability: (How) do the Links Work? Urban Studies, 38(8), 1233-1251.
28. Ma, J.L.C. (1992). Social support, mutual aid groups, the mentally ill and their families. Hong Kong Journal of Mental Health, 21(1), 16-27.
29. Maton, K.I. & Salem, D.A. (1995). Organizational characteristics of empowering community settings: A multiple case study approach. American Journal of Community Psychology, 23(5), 631-656.
30. Medvene, L. & Krauss, D. (1989). Causal attributes and parent-child relationships in a self-help group of families of the mentally ill. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 19, 1413-1430.
31. Mok, B.H. (2001). Cancer self-help groups in China: A study of individual change, perceived benefit and community impact. Small Group Research, 32(2), 115-132.
32. Mok, B.H. & Mui, A. (1996). Empowerment in residential care for the elderly: The case of an aged home in Hong Kong. Journal of Gerontological Social Work, 27(1/2), 23-35.
33. Moore, M. (2001). Empowerment at last? Journal of International Development, 13, 322-329.
34. Nylund, M. (2000). The mixed-based nature of self-help groups in Finland. Group Work, 12(2), 64-85.
35. Parsons, R.J. (1991). Empowerment: Purpose and practice principle in social work. Social Work with Groups, 14(2), 7-21.
36. Prestby, J. E., Wandersman, A., Florin, P., Rich, R.C. & Chavis, D.M. (1990). Benefits, costs, incentive management and participation in voluntary organizations: A means to understanding and promoting empowerment. American Journal of Community Psychology, 18, 117-149.
37. Rappaport, J. (1987). Terms of empowerment/exemplars of prevention: Toward a theory for community psychology. American Journal of Community Psychology, 15(2), 121-143.
38. Rose, D.R. & Clear, T.R. (1998). Incarceration, social capital, and crime: implications for social disorganization theory. Criminology, 36(6), 441-480.
39. Schulz, A.J., Israel, B.A., Zimmerman, M.A. & Checkoway, B.N. (1995). Empowerment as a multi-level construct: Perceived control at the individual, organizational and community levels. Health Education Research: Theory & Practice, 10(3), 309-327.
40. Somerville, P. (1998). Empowerment through residence. Housing Studies, 13, 233- 257.
41. Speer, P.H. & Hughes, J. (1995). Community organizing ecological route to empowerment and power. American Journal of Community Psychology, 23, 729-748.
42. Steward, M.J. (1990). Expanding theoretical conceptualizations of self-help groups. Social Science Medicine, 31(9), 1057-1066.
43. Teachman, J.D., Paasch, K. & Carver, K. (1997). Social capital and the generation of human capital. Social Forces, 75(4), 1343-1359.
44. Weissberg, R. (1999). The Politics of Empowerment. Westport, CT: Praeger.
45. Wong, Y.M. (1996). The birth and growth of Hong Kong Stoma Association. Special Issue on the Opening of the New Office of the Hong Kong Stoma Association (16-18). Hong Kong: Hong Kong Stoma Association.
46. Zimmerman, M.A. (1990). Taking aim on empowerment research: On the distinction between individual and psychological conceptions. American Journal of Community Psychology, 18, 169-177.
47. Zimmerman, M.A. & Rappaport, J. (1988). Citizen participation, perceived control, and psychological empowerment. American Journal of Community Psychology, 16(5), 725-751.