PLM-College of Medicine Family and Community Medicine

Class 2010 Lecturer: Dr. Mae Collao

Section 3B Date: June 20,2008
The Organizing Process People are organized to acquire and
Session objectives: demonstrate power
 Definition of terms The threat or use of power helps to influence
 Define the key elements of community specific individuals to correct:
organizing  Specific problems
 Enumerate the approaches of community  Create systems change
organizing  Resolve Conflicts
 Explain the communication strategies  Communication strategies
 Describe the 7 stages of community
organizing About the Presenter (Organizer)
 An effective communicator uses personal
Definition experiences-his/her own to and those of
Community Organizing the audience to build bridges of
 Is about modifying the attitudes and understanding
behaviors of people, not as individuals  He knows when people are concerned or
but as a group to: feel threatened, their desire to listen
o Improve a social or health condition increases
o Alter a social or health structure  His most powerful tool is a question
o Enhance social relationships to bring  He should always acknowledge the
about a greater capcity by the group audience values and norms
to address common social and health
problems Factors that Enhance the Ability of the
 Is about having a broad representative Communicator
cross-section of the community working I. The Persons
together to identify and address common  Prestige
health problems that it defines as real  Attractiveness
and important.  Role
 Is about people creating social change  Likeness to the audience
 Credibility
Key Elements of Community Organizing  Don’t argue from the self interest
The four P’s perspective
People  Be candid as much as possible- some
Problem degree of exposure is helpful
Participation  It’s ok to identify your biases
Process and Power
 Don’t use responses that sound
rehearsed
APPROACHES TO COMMUNITY
ORGANIZING  Anticipate difficult questions and think
Process Approach through responses
People are organized to facilitate:
II. About the Message
 Communication
 How you frame the issue also
 Education
determines the effectiveness of the
 Hope
communication
 Awareness
 An effective communicator will
 Sense of community
determine the audience concern and
By working together, the group learns how to
attitude about the issue and then
address common health problems and achieve
shape a message to address the
specific objectives
factors
 Messages that acknowledge both sides
Power Approach
of an issue are more convincing to
 those with a less favorable initial
attitude
 Avoid a strong appeal to fear, the
audience will think you are over
reacting or they may become
immobilized
 If you use fear, follow with specific
actions that the audience can do to
reduce the threat
 Avoid attacking your audience, or it will
get defensive and discount your
presentation
 When possible, it is helpful to start your
response by agreeing with some
elements of the other person’s
remarks/ questions
 A soft sell is usually most effective
 Try to illuminate the issue of
agreement and outline possible
solutions rather than intensifying the
points of disagreement
 Use facts, figures and feelings to
backup your comments
 Humanize the exchange
 Use local examples
III. About the Audience
 Audiences sometimes listen to,
understand and respond to messages
 People listen to people with whom they
agree, however when they disagree
with the presenter, they attempt to
minimize or avoid the importance of
the message and discredit the
communicator
 Do not start with “you may not
agree…” for you may lose the audience
as it silently prepares counter
arguments
 People’s desire to develop counter
arguments can be reduced if you
present a mild dose of the opposing
views along with your arguments
 People understand only in terms of
their own experiences, hence you need
to communicate within the experience
of your target audience
 When we cant find an experience to
facilitate understanding with another
party, we must create an experience
for that party
 Make sure to address the underlying
factors and concerns that are revealed
when someone makes a statement or
asks a question
 You can increase an audience
commitment by asking them to take a
public stand (i.e. a show of hands for
support)
 It is helpful to start any presentation
with a joke, a story, or a quote. Make
sure it is matched to your audience and
your message
1. Getting Started
The organizer must:
 Be invited by the community, its
leadership
 Help to highlight frustrations and raise
issues
 Cultivate hope for a better way
 Instill a desire for change
 Be seen as a winner
 Demonstrate stick-to-itiveness
 Help the community see why this effort
is important from its perspective
 Help people feel they have the power
to make the necessary changes
 Help develop a core group of
concerned citizens, informal and formal
community leaders
2. Targeting Issues and Setting
Priorities
*Targeting- the need for organizers and
community- change organizations to
identify and select specific issues and
individuals they desire to affect an action
or development (??)
*with the assistance of the organizer and
core group of community members, the
host community must:
 Identify important issues and
commonly held problems
 Define desired changes
 Rank problems and set priorities
 Develop shared vision for problem
solution
*understand that controversy is part of
creating change- without controversy
people may not be energized enough to
act. A controversial issue is redundancy.
 Spotting potential indigenous leaders
 Comes from the poor sector of
community and is directly engaged in
economic production
 Must process credibility and integrity
  Is receptive to change
 Must an analytical and critical mind
 Must be able to communicate
effectively
 Must be interested in the upliftment
of his community
Targeting Supporters and Opponents
 Identify supporters who are
concerned about these issues, who
are willing to work towards a desire
change, and who have the ability to
make the change
 Identify Opponents who will stand in
the way of the desired change and
who have the ability to make or
prevent the desired change
 Spotting potential indigenous leaders
Core Group Formation
 Laying down of the foundation of a
strong organization brought about by
bringing together several indigenous
leaders to exchange knowledge and
insights towards a deeper
understanding of the dynamics of the
community
 Setting up of an organization
 After core group formation:
o Set up purok organizations-
elect leaders
o Necessary ground work must
be done by the indigenous
leaders and organizers to
prepare for community
meetings
Targeting Suppoters
 Assess who is most affected by these
issues
 Assess who has the potential to help
you create the desired change
Targeting Issues
 Convert private troubles into public
issues
 Select an issue that people can get
excited about
 Define what changes you want to
occur
 Select an issue that is winnable
3. Mobilization and Training
Goal: build people’s self confidence and
develop their collective spirit. These
activities must include assessment and
reflection sessions including team building
Activities: must address the felt needs of
the community, tap local and external
resources in the solution, all sectors must
be involved and their different roles
clarified.
Notes on Mobilizing, an Overview:
 Mobilization- is about using the
supporters whom you have organized
to influence the opponents you have
identified
 Timing is everything- impact is
dimished if the group enters the
process too late or too early
 Mobilization must be seen as a tactic,
building on the next as a way to
accomplish a well defined goal or
vision
 An effective campaign requires public
suppor, therefore you must design
actions with general public in mind
 You must be concerned about your
group’s and your opponents images
 Power is not only what you have and
what you can influence, but what
others think you have and think you
can do
 A threat is more often terrifying than
reality
 Never go outside the experiences of
your group, but whenever possible,
go outside the xperiences of the
opposition
 Make the oppositionlive up to its own
rules and rhetorics
 A good tactic is one that your people
will enjoy and be comfortable using
 To win, you must “keep the heat on”
but do not let things drag on too long
 Always be ready to move with the
flow of events- be flexible, don’t wait
until all the resources are lined up
because most of the time, you need
to do what you can with what you
have
Types of Mobilization Tactics
 Persuasion
 Negotiation
 Direct action
Issues for selection of tactics
 The greater the commitment of the
group, the greater the risks the group
will be willing to take to achieve its
desired goals
 Always start with low risk tactics first
 Pick actions that are both enjoyable
and winnable
 Tactics should fit the group’s style,
history, and culture
 Make sure the tactics are linked
together so that they build on each
other
 Make sure that the selected tactics
relate to:
o The substance of the issue
o The desired change- goal of the
group
o The culture an history of the
community
o Perception and organizational
composition of the group
o The available resources
o The relationship between the
supporters and the opposition
o The groups norms
Mobilizing Tactics
 Negotiation Phase
a. Persuasion- involves problem solving and
education. Information is assembled,
alternatives are examined and mutually
satisfying solutions are selected.
This tactic is used when there are shared
objectives, between two groups, when
disagreements are modest, and when
misunderstanding can be mediated with
improved communication and/or by
referring to a common interest
THREE PARTS OF PERSUASION AS A
TACTIC:
 The presenter
 The message
 The audience
b. Negotiation- is used when you
cannot, or choose not to persuade. It
requires that you make a demand,
back it up with arguments and then
make a concession a trade
Negotiation reflects power relationships
more than it alters them
THREE PHASES OF NEGOTIATION:
 Pre negotiation phase
o Establich self/ organization as a
serious contender
o Determine what motivates
those who are blocking goal
achievement
o Asses where those who stand
on your way are most/ least
vulnerable
o Define what it is you have to or
trade to overcome or neutralize
the concerns or onjections of
those who stand in your way.- if
this cannot be done, shift to
persuasion tactic
o Rehearse making the demands-
define roles and stance, define
public and private agenda,
develop lines of arguments,
anticipate objections, create
defense and counter
arguments and identify
potential concessions and your
bottom line
o Understand that compromise is
important in negotiation- not all
of your demands will be met
o Begin negotiation before the
power of your group has
peaked
o It is a process
o What is said is as important as
what is done
o Use questions to determine the
meaning of the oppositions
demand, o reveal the degree of
interest in specific demands,
and to expose items of possible
tension.
o Start with demands that are
more than you need/want
o Maintain the image of
responsibility- do not make
such unreasonable demands
that your opponent can walk
away and paint you as an
extremist or an obstructionist
o Threats must be credible to be
effective- your resources and
readiness must match your
rhetorics
o Threats are actually more
effective than actually invoking
them
o Increased demonstration of
groups commitment to
 demand, increases
effectiveness of threats-
without having to use them
 Settlement Phase
o Seek a win-win situation
o Win on merits no on just power
o Concessions are made on
merits because it is in the best
interest of the opposition
o You must help opponents
rationalize change
o A third party mediator may
offer an opponent a way out by
yielding to the prestige of the
mediator rather than the power
of the challenger
c. Direct action
 The Organizer and Core Group
community members must:
o Develop a plan of action to
effectively address the
presenting issues/ problems
o Assess the current power
structures and other factors
that create or maintain the
problem
o Examine the internal and
external obstacles,
opportunities and resources
o Define the targets- those who
are most affected by the
problem, those who can help
create the desired change and
those who will stand in the way
of the desired change

 Social change and conflict are

o Develop strategies for
interrelated, neither can exist without organizing the supporters into
the other a group/ organizations to
address the issues and the
 Direct action embraces conflict
opponents
 Requires a well organized
o Design strategies for mobilizing
constituency
the organized group to create
 Used to increase public awareness, to
the desired change
threaten and embarrass an opponent
and to provide glue to your
5. Organizing a Power/ Process
movement
Structure
 helps at times to create bargaining
 The Organizer and Community
power
Members must:
 needs to conform to the standards of
o Educate and energize the
news worthiness
public on the target issue
 helps transform the complexities of o Cultivate relationship with
the issue and associated supporters
relationships so that new, simple o Design structural and
patterns emerge communication links for
 Good vs. Evil addressing the identified
 Serves to dramatize a point of view problems, bringing the
supporters together and
SOME TYPES AND EXAMPLE OF DIRECT implementing the action
ACTION: strategies that will create the
 Protest- legal disputes, marches, desired change
demonstrations, rallies, vigils, o Develop leaders to support the
petitions, teach ins, picketing agenda and implement the
 Non Cooperation- strikes, boycotts, action plan
absenteeism (must be widely
supported in order to work)  Notes on Organizing:
o People get involved for selfish
 Interventions- sit ins, phone ins,
reasons and they get involved
stand ins, interference with routine
when they feel they can make
procedures
a difference
o Determine what will motivate
4. Planning for action
these potential supporters
 o Develop a message that will  Have periodic progress reports on on-
meet their needs and matches going projects to keep the spark of
their perspective enthusiasm
o Identify supporters via one on  Conduct regular social activities
one meetings, petition drives,  Inter-visitation
direct mail, rallies, canvassing,
 Contests
ad campaign, fairs, community
 Health fairs and/or exhibits
meetings, etc.
 Give recognition to those who have
o People need an organization to
done well
demonstrate power
o The organizational structure
END
should meet the needs of the
supporters and the scope of
the action Sorry if this came late, doctora wasn’t able to
email me the power point presentation so I
TYPES OF STRUCTURE THAT BRING PEOPLE borrowed notes from dra. Samaniego’s Lecture.
TOGETHER: 
 Community forum
 Task committee
 Steering committee
 Block group
 Neighborhood association
 Town meeting
 Coalition/ Partnership
 Others

6. Mobilizing the group to achieve

small Victories
 At this stage the organized group
supportersexecutes the tactics to
create the desired change
 The organizer must help the group
to:
o Select the appropriate tactics
o Keep the action simple an fun
o Own the action
o Use tactics that will achieve
small victories to advance the
desired change

7. Continuing the process

The organizer must work with the
organized group to:
 Make sure it receives feedback
 Monitor actions
 Evaluate effectiveness of strategy on
overall goal
 Redefine actions
 Identifies new problems, priorities,
and strategies
 Implement revised action plan
 Keeping organization active