Testing a predictive model of the community development process

Abstract

The research described in this article was undertaken to discover the extent to which the SHAred Process Evaluation System (SHAPES) model of the community development process can be said to describe what actually happens in a community development project. The model and its development and instrumentation are described. The four case studies of community development projects used to examine the model are set out. It is concluded that the SHAPES model describes not only what community workers experience, but with two modifications, what community participants experience. A major unexpected finding was that there are significant differences in the way in which community participants and community workers perceive the same process at work in a community development project.