Wither participation and empowerment?

These articles represent a convergence of community research on participa-tion with theoretical developments onempowerment. As a group, the papers extend conceptual models of empowerment and participation in a variety of ways by identifying indivMual and community perceptions, elements of the physical and social climate, and organizational characteristics as areas of study that broaden and connect he ideas of participation and empower-ment. Theory and researeh on participation and empowerment still lack strong connections to other existing bodies of theory and do not yet focus adequately on the mechanisms by which individual groups and communities may be-come empowered. Empowerment and participation researchers have not yet explicitly acknowledged and explored the tensions that exist between parti-san advocacy and scientific inquiry. These are challenges for the future. This special section of the American Journal of Community Psychology marks a convergence of two interesting developments in the field of com-munity psychology. First, we see the continuing trajectory of research and action projects developed by Wandersman and his colleagues including the