The interaction of difference and power as a basic framework for understanding work with African Americans: Family theory, empowerment and educational approaches

Abstract

The dynamics of difference and power constitute an essential element in the social/cultural processes which affect people's behavior. Racial and other differences between people make them vulnerable to anxiety and negative responses when they interact with others. These responses are compounded when differences are used as a basis for social system structures which lock some groups into relatively powerless roles within the society (in this case, African American families). At the same time these structures lock others in roles that embody power. How African Americans and the practitioners who work with them behave in relation to having and lacking power as a result of these societal roles must be understood by all practitioners who seek to empower African American clients. Such understanding is also critical for the use of newer models of intervention. These models look beyond personal change as the means of helping people to cope with their burdensome realities, focusing also on social role, social status and political process.