The Trust Factor in Participation and Social Education

This article offers a framework for social educators and community developers to combine constructivist and prescriptive approaches in eliciting community participation in socioeconomic programs. It identifies the role of the agent and the community member in the participation process. It defines their need for mutual adjustment in these roles, which occur in interactional contexts. These adjustments may take the form of program changes or altered learning styles on the part of both parties. Several barriers to change exist within the structure of the community. This article proposes that program flexibility is a key element in eliciting successful participation, as the structural makeup of communities cannot easily be changed. It classified the likely areas within which change can and cannot occur in situations of contact, and it outlines an approach that sensitizes practitioners to the historical, cultural, and affective factors that must be built into program design.