Empowerment: Understanding the Theory Behind Empowerment

Social groups seek to empower their members, corporations are discovering the benefits of empowering their employees, and organizations seek to empower groups and individuals so that these groups can gain control of their lives and be successful. Empowerment efforts fall under the categories of social empowerment, structural empowerment, or psychological empowerment. This book gives the theoretical background for each aspect of empowerment and lays the foundation for an integrated model of empowerment developed by the author. The information from this book comes out of the author's doctoral research on empowerment. His research found that there is a body of work regarding social, structural, and psychological empowerment, but there are no integrated empowerment models that include all three aspects of empowerment. Additionally, little research into divine empowerment has been conducted. "Divine empowerment" is addressed in this book and provides the foundation for a four phased integrated empowerment model that includes the social, structural, psychological, and divine aspects of empowerment.