Educating Leadership for Effecting Community Change through Voluntary Associations

Abstract

Voluntary associations are an indispensable tool for placing capacity development issues high on local communities' agendas for action—issues including primary prevention in mental health and health, employment, and social justice. This paper identifies leadership problems faced by professional social workers in their efforts to mobilize voluntary associations to pursue social change objectives at the local level. Professional and volunteer performance of six leadership functions have proven effective in dealing with these problems. The authors conclude that schools of social work should take broad initiatives to refocus attention on voluntary associations and their potential effectiveness as vehicles for social change.