Sense of Community and Community Participation: A Meta-Analytic Review

Many studies indicate that participation and sense of community (SoC) are associated factors enhancing community development. However, research has almost completely ignored the magnitude of the association between the two and the stability of this relationship across contexts, populations and different forms of community participation. A meta-analysis was conducted to assess the following: (a) the strength and stability of the SoC-participation relationship; (b) variations in this relationship associated with different forms of participation (i.e., civic and political); and (c) the influence of population characteristics on the SoC-participation relationship. The results showed that the SoC-participation relationship is significant, positive and moderately strong for forms of participation in the adult population and specific cultural contexts. Implications for theory and applications are discussed.