Lsn1: Introductory Concepts in Community Development
Community Development and Organization
Tomas Quintin D. Andres
Community Development: A Manual, 1988
THERE IS NO SINGLE CONCEPT of
community organization practice; rather, there
are varied conceptualizations. Fundamentally,
however, there are four general phases of the basic
community organization process. These help
determine the nature of community organization
practice and the particular role functions of
community development organization workers.
These phases are the following:
Phase One: Information/issue/problem
identification and dissemination
This is the phase where real needs are
determined from felt needs; problems are
defined and analyzed; relationships are
developed, rapport established, face-to-face
interaction with people made. Opinions are
elicited and information disseminated.
Phase Two: Mobilization of
people/community
In this phase people are stimulated to come
together to discuss problems, call meetings where
community problems are identified, problems are
analyzed together with the people, objectives,
plan of action and implementation are set,
potential leaders are identified and committee
work are stimulated.
Phase Three: Organization
This is the combining of constructive forces of
men and materials, machinery and money so
that they may work together in an orderly
way, to turn out finished goods for profit, or
render services, to the community.
Phase Four: Education
This is the phase where members of the
community are educated to assume responsibility
for their organization and to acquire the
organizational skills and techniques essential to
organization maintenance.
The community development and
organization practice is perceived to be two-
pronged. While it emphasizes human resource
development, it simultaneously provides economic
opportunities for the people through socio-
economic projects. This in particular is the
developmental nature of community organization
practice for which potential community
organization workers and developers should be
prepared.
Improving the quality of life of a community
depends to a very great extent on the people
themselves who form that community. Community
development and organization must be based on the
sublime Filipino values of BAYANIHAN
(working together for free) and "NAKATAYO
SA SARILING PAA" (being on one's own) It is,
definitely, not a dole-out nor a program that
will foment the negative values of "pahingi nga"
(mendicancy) and "nakasandal sa pader" (total
dependence on others). Community development is
a partnership among the community developer,
the people of the community and other agencies in
uplifting the standards of life of the community. The
people of the community must be willing to give
their share in the work.
The aim of community development and
organization is to help the people acquire a
coherent meaning to life; it leads the people
towards the studying, perfecting and achieving of a
system useful for the equilibrium and development
of the human being because existence without
direction or falsified in meaning generates moral
decadence, social ills, personal and collective suffering.
Community development helps clarify this
meaning and shows how to convert a false meaning
into a true and meaningful orientation in life.
Through community development the people
develop a common feeling of solidarity and become
aware that they can achieve positive changes in
themselves. They come to realize that life has
meaning and all activities should be guided by this
meaning.
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 Four General Phases of Basic Community Development and Organization Work

Phase Tasks Skills

A. Information/issue/  Determine real needs from the felt
problem identification needs
and dissemination  Define and analyze the problem/s
 Develop relationships, establish
rapport, ace-to-ace interaction with
people
 Legwork – eliciting opinions and
disseminating information
B. Mobilization of  Stimulate people to come together to
people/community discuss problems, call meetings or
community identification of problems
 Analyze problem together with the
people.
 Set objectives, plan of action and
implementation.
 Identify potential leaders
 Stimulate committee work
C. Organization  Build the organization – formalize
structures and leadership
D. Education  Educate members to assume
responsibility for their organization
 Teach them organizational skills and
techniques essential to organization
management
 Data gathering skills
 Problem identification and
analysis skills
 Interactional skills
 Data gathering skills
 Problem identification and
analysis skills
 Interactional skills
 Interactional skills
 Organization skills
 Project management skills
 Interactional skills
 Organizational skills
 Project management skills
 Trainor skills

THE TRAINING OF A COMMUNITY organizations. As a facilitator, he seeks to

DEVELOPMENT AND ORGANIZATION
WORKER
TO BE A COMMUNITY development and
organization worker is not a simple job; it is a
vocation, a mission. Prospective applicants for
such a mission should have the following
qualifications:
1. He/she has demonstrated potentials for
community development work.
2. He/she has demonstrated professional
commitment, direction, motivation and
maturity as manifested in his work-history.
3. He/she is willing to understand and respect
the values and culture of people.
4. He/she has the genuine intention of sharing
whatever goods he/she has with his/her
fellowmen.
The Tasks of the Community Development
and Organization Worker
The various tasks performed by the community
development and organization worker in the
four phases of community organization work
indicate that he functions basically as a
facilitator and trainer of indigenous groups and
stimulate wider citizen participation through
organization. His efforts are directed at influencing,
changing and modifying attitudes and behavior
of people, not as individuals, but as members
of groups, organizations and communities. His
major function is to mobilize and organize
people to come together to help in activities. He
facilitates the opening of communication channels
among members by providing appropriate
structures such as committees, discussion or study
groups and the like. Much of his work has to do
with face-to-ace interaction with people.
As a trainer, the community development
and organization worker educates people to
participate more fully in democratic processes.
Members are helped to view their community
organization as an educational vehicle for
democratic living. His function is to educate the
people to discuss the nature of their problems
and help them take action on them. He
educates the people by involving them in the
actual problem-solving process. He teaches
them the skills and techniques of gathering data
about their problems, discussing their findings,
analyzing these findings, making decisions, setting
alternatives and implementing plans.
As trainer the worker helps the community to
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understand and utilize the various organizational
processes and mechanisms. He prepares them to
gradually assume the responsibility for organ-
ization building and maintenance. He possesses
an understanding of group relationships and
dynamics, and the ability to train community
or organization members in human
relations skills.
To fulfill his functions as facilitator and
trainer, he must possess skills in
1. Data-gathering
2. Problem-identification and analysis
3. Interaction
4. Organization
5. Project management
6. Training
Levels of Community Development and the
Organization Worker
There are three different levels in which the
community development and organization
worker functions as a facilitator and trainer. His
cognitive capacities and his competency in skills
required at each level determine his ability to
function on any particular level.
At Level I the community development
and organization worker plays the role of a
direct grassroots worker where he organizes
groups and communities. For this level he must
possess basic organizing skills. As facilitator he
spends much of his time in face-to-face
interaction with people, stimulating them to
participate in decision-making and problem-
solving processes. As trainer, he educates the
community in understanding and utilizing the
various organizational processes and mechanisms.
He develops their skills in project management
and prepares them to assume leadership
responsibilities for their organization.
At Level II, the community development
and organization worker continues to play the
role of a direct grassroots organizer in both
facilitative and trainor role and as a trainer of
human relations skills. At this level he should
possess a deeper understanding of group
relationships and dynamics, intergroup tensions
and social pressures. He must be able to facilitate
group dynamic exercises among groups and
communities. He assumes direct responsibility for
training communities in leadership skills, self-
awareness skills, human relations training and the
like.
At Level III, the community development
and organization worker continues to play the
role of trainer in human relations skills (at the
community level) but he primarily functions as
an over-all supervisor and trainer of community
organization supervisors. He assumes
responsibility for the continued training of
community development and organization
workers in levels I and II. This he does by
holding supervisory sessions and providing
further theoretical inputs which are very much
needed by the community organization workers
in levels I and II. He demonstrates to the
community organization workers the
execution of the following skills: handling
community analyses, eliciting, and evoking
techniques.
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