Community Transformation and Collective Healing: Lessons from Pakistan, Brazil, and Zambia

Community psychology has long sought to be global in its scope and focus, particularly having liberation as a primary and overarching goal of the field. Despite seeking to stand in solidarity with marginalized and disadvantaged persons, the field has been criticized as remaining largely western-centric in its worldview and epistemology. The historic disconnect between systems of mental health –as traditionally defined within a western context – and the experiences of marginalized and indigenous peoples around the world necessitates greater consideration of local methods of healing with greater accessibility, cultural credibility, and sustainability within local communities. In this article, the authors utilize traditional mechanisms of healing in Pakistan, Brazil, and Zambia as case studies to advocate for a community based mental health promotion model that weds: 1) prevention and health promotion; 2) professional allopathic service providers partnering with paraprofessional and traditional health practitioners; and 3) community engagement and political literacy as a transformative and empowering mental health system of care that targets the individual and the community as source and location of intervention and healing. Results are aligned with community psychology goals and intended outcomes and suggest an action-oriented model in which the community serves as actors in and agents of their own collective health and healing.