ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the influences and evaluates the effectiveness of family support programs. It examines the role of community and the process of empowerment in family support. Family support programs represent increased understanding of contextual factors and a commitment to empowerment. The constituency also varies, for some programs serve an age-specific population while others nurture people throughout the life span. The linkages among community, school, and family have changed since the founding of the United States. The categories include local community; administrative community; social community; instrumental community; ethnic, caste, or class community; and ideological community. Empowerment is an ecological theory which considers the person and the environment, including roles, relationships, resources, costs, and benefits. Family support programs promote social support by offering opportunities to give as well as to receive. Some researchers have argued that family support programs produce positive outcomes for adults as well as children.
