The concepts of resiliency: Theoretical lessons from community research

Abstract

Resiliency is a concept for which both its appeal and frustration comes from the elasticity of its meaning. The idea of resiliency commonly has been found in areas of human development and psychopathology, there is now an increased interest in extending its application. Community resiliency is increasingly a central element in public health policies and programs. In what follows, we strive to identify some central theoretical issues that arise when the concept of resiliency is applied to communities. Our purpose is to work through these issues in a way that clarifies the concept by bringing together useful, though otherwise disparate, strands from the research literature.