Empowerment

Empowerment (of English. Empowerment = empowerment, Empowerment ) refers to strategies and measures to increase the level of autonomy and self-determination in the lives of people and communities and enable them to their interests (again) own authority, responsible and self-determined to represent. Empowerment refers not only to the process of empowerment as well as the professional support of the people, their sense of power and lack of influence ( powerlessness ) to overcome and exercise their discretion and resources and use them.

The term empowerment is also used for an accomplished state of self-responsibility and self-determination; in this sense is sometimes referred to in the German empowerment as self-competence.

The term empowerment comes from the American community psychology and to the social scientist Julian Rappaport (1985 ) linked.

Empowerment in social work forms a working approach resource-oriented intervention. In the context of civic education and democratic education empowerment is viewed as an instrument to increase the responsibility of the citizen / the citizen. Empowerment is a key concept in the discussion of the promotion of civic engagement. Empowerment as a concept, which is characterized by a move away from a deficit- oriented to a strength -oriented perception, finds himself increasingly in management concepts, in the adult and continuing education, in the narrative biography work and self-help.

Empowerment in social work science

The concept of empowerment in social work is the still widespread deficit angle on a fraught with defects clientele towards a focus on the potential and resources of the people. The focus of this approach is the strengthening (yet) existing potential and the encouragement to develop these opportunities. Empowerment in socio-educational field of action that is tried people in the (Re) gaining their decision and freedom of choice to support their autonomous way of life and to motivate them for further development. Unless it is working with, for example, old people, people with disabilities and people with mental illness, empowerment can lead to the highest possible degree of autonomy, and those affected stay motivated to go beyond experienced and self-imposed limits.

In social work, the focus is often on the subject-centered or group-specific level. It is with regard to certain groups of people are essential ( for example, people with intellectual disabilities ) to work on the institutional as well as on the socio-political level. It is this priority to the establishment of democratic structures and the breakdown of hierarchies in the institutions (for example, residential homes for people with intellectual disabilities ), and in addition to creating opportunities for participation and influence at the political level. Social work raised here as a coordinating and mediating support in cooperation with the parties concerned dar.

In social work science courses the subject of empowerment is a rarely explicitly taught as a priority. Exceptions are, for example, a certificate course of the Alice Salomon Hochschule Berlin or the Master's program " Empowerment Studies" at the University of Applied Sciences Dusseldorf.

Criticisms in the empowerment approach in social work: is also important to consider critically the extent of empowerment approach is really applicable to all parties concerned, including professionals. It is mainly the question of whether psychiatry - experienced people actually see in acute crisis or conflict situations in a position to influence decisions in a participatory. Albert Lenz is rather assumed that people in these situations behave primarily regressive and leave the responsibility for further action to the professionals. It must be assumed, therefore, that the implementation of the empowerment concept, it requires a minimum of communication and reflection ability of the person concerned.

Empowerment in medical treatment / therapy

Empowerment is now used frequently in everyday medical practice. However, over 90 % of surveyed professionals [ GK ] the meaning could not explain or correct course in the German language. To declare this term in common usage clear, the working group has " concrete reform approaches - Specializations - GuK " ( BGM) in Vienna, a simple summary definition creates [ GK 2013 ]:

Empowerment is to promote the ability for independent / self-determined action ( resource extraction / motivation / participation )

Empowerment and new citizenship

In the discussion about the new civic engagement, as a modern variant of voluntary work, great emphasis is placed on the promotion of self-competence of the citizens. The volunteer work should no longer be defined by unpaid work and "honor" through the acquisition of offices in clubs and associations, but to the dedicated citizens provide a platform to take his concerns into their own hands. After decades of state total care and the spread of Expertentums in which the discretion of the laity, the ordinary citizen, it became increasingly beyond his privacy, is to be a return to the laity skills and appreciated the role of citizens in solving social problems now be. Civic engagement is to provide individuals with the opportunity to re- shaping participation in the community and expand on these activities, for example, his skills through training.

Empowerment in the workplace

Increasingly finds the idea of empowerment and input into management concepts. When " Empowerment Circle " is the strength -based approach here an instrument of organizational development. The interdisciplinary teams organized empowerment as a development of quality circles to improve the organizational culture, strengthening the motivation and skills of personnel to the destination. With flat hierarchies, participation in decisions, opening of creative effort, a positive, appreciative team culture, self-evaluation, acceptance of responsibility ( for results ), more self-determination and continuous learning is a subjective job satisfaction of employees are effected, the optimal use of existing potential and skills allowed. However, it is important to ensure that the individual employee also has the capabilities to meet its mandated responsibilities. Otherwise there is the danger of being overwhelmed or Handlungslethargie. Goal of these activities is to save costs of control, among other things, the drop out through the independent and self- motivated act of the employee.

The turnover of employees can be reduced through empowerment

Information Security Empowerment

In the information security an older approaches to security-related sensitization ( " Awareness" ), sovereign deal the following model for the empowerment of private users as well as employees and managers in companies and organizations with the risks of IT-based communication and to take responsibility in their sphere of influence while. The "empowerment" is to compensate inter alia lack of experience with security threats from the Internet, e -mail and other modern communication channels in this case.

Criticism

Paradoxically goes noting that a certain group requires empowerment, so that their self-esteem needs to be consolidated on the basis of awareness of their strengths, always a deficit diagnosis on the part of the problems of this group involved experts ahead. The fundamental asymmetry of the relationship between experts and clients is usually not provided by empowerment in question. It is critical to consider the extent to which the empowerment approach is really applicable to all patients. It is particularly the question of whether mentally ill people are in acute crisis situations in a position to make their own decisions. According to Albert Lenz people behave primarily regressive in acute crisis situations and give the responsibility to experts from.