Reflect upon the important communities (other than family and friends) in your life and list them. You might consider some of the following as personal communities: Recreational club or league A work

Reflect upon the important communities (other than family and friends) in your life and list them. You might consider some of the following as personal communities:

• Recreational club or league
• A workplace
• A block, neighborhood, or town where you live or once lived
• A religious congregation or group
• A mutual help (self-help) or other support group
• A civic club, or group working for change in your society or community
• The college or university you are attending
• An Internet chat room or other on-line group

Consider why you listed each community. Consider the emotions you experience in this community.

Review your list and determine which of these communities are:

• Localities?
• Relational communities?
• Microsystems?
• Workplaces?
• Other organizations?
• Mediating structures linking individuals to larger communities or systems?
• Larger populations or macrosystems?

Now, select the community with which you most often interact outside of family and friends and assess that community using the four McMillan-Chavis elements of sense of community: Membership, influence, integration, and shared emotional connection.

In an essay, identify your selected community and address the questions listed under each of the four elements.

Membership:

• How is membership defined? What else do members have in common?
• Are there common symbols shared by members?
• What investment (material, emotional, other) have you made in this community?
• How deep is your sense of emotional safety in this community?
• Is being a member of this group an important identity for you? How?

Influence:

• How does being in this community influence you as an individual?
• How much influence do you as an individual have on this community?
• If you wanted to influence a decision in this community, how would you do that?

Integration:

• How are your individual needs fulfilled in this community?
• How do you help fulfill other members’ needs?
• What values are shared in this community?

Shared Emotional Connection:

• Do you feel an emotional bond with other members of the community? How?
• What rituals, celebrations or other occasions strengthen community bonds?
• What community narratives are shared in this community?

Length: 3-5 pages