Understanding, Resisting, and Overcoming Oppression: Toward Psychopolitical Validity

2003/03/01 by Isaac Prilleltensky · 4 citations
Health Professions · Psychology · Social Sciences · #Community Health and Development #Resilience and Mental Health #Youth Development and Social Support

paper · doi:10.1023/a:1023043108210

openalex publication_date 2003/03/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/27

Abstract

My first objective in this paper is to synthesize, synoptically, the literature on oppression and liberation with the contributions to this special issue. To fulfil this aim I introduce a framework for understanding, resisting, and overcoming oppression. The framework consists of psychopolitical well-being; experiences, consequences, and sources of oppression; and actions toward liberation. Each of these components is subdivided into 3 domains of oppression and well-being: collective, relational, and personal. Experiences of suffering as well as resistance and agency are part of the framework. My second objective is to offer ways of closing the gap between research and action on oppression and liberation. To do so I suggest 2 types of psychopolitical validity: epistemic and transformative.

Citations

• Emancipatory Responses to Oppression: The Template of Land‐Use Planning and the Old Order Amish of Ontario
• Polities Change, Oppression Remains: On the Psychology and Politics of Oppression

Cited by

• The role of power in wellness, oppression, and liberation: the promise of psychopolitical validity
• Psychopolitical literacy for wellness and justice
• Seven key insights from critical realism and their implications for ecological thinking and action in community psychology
• Psychopolitical validity [wikipedia]