Toward an Interactional Conception of Community

An attempt to formulate an interactional & process conception of community & to suggest some conceptual guidelines for the study of community from this perspective. 2 highly signif types of relationships in studying the community field are the interplay of community actions & interactions (1) with the demographic, ecological, & physical setting, & (2) with other interactional fields both in the given locality agglomerate & in the mass society. 3 important analytical elements of any action are (i) the persons involved, as actors or community participants, (ii) the associations or groups through which the action takes place, & (iii) the stages & phases of action through time. Ways of viewing units of interaction are described. 6 types of characteristics or criteria are suggested for differentiating community action from that not appropriate to the community field: (a) degree of comprehensiveness of interests pursued & needs met, (b) degree to which the action is identified with the locality, (c) relative number, status, & degree of involvement of local residents, (d) relative number & signif of local associations involved, (e) degree to which the action maintains or changes the local society, & (f) extent of org of the action. Each dimension is seen as a necessary element of a complex of characteristics. Before causal or sequential type of analysis can proceed far, indices must be developed of these various elements. Contributions, realized & potential, of an interactional & process perspective are: emphasis on dynamics & change, with structure an integral part of the formulation; scope & inductive nature of the perspective, with a concern for gathering data at a relatively low level of conceptualization for the development of fruitful hyp's that will help explain action & change regardless of where they might lead conceptually, & opportunity for treatment of both descriptive & normative data in the same context, which aids in the orientation of res toward action. H. K. Schwarzweller.