Restricted accessResearch articleFirst published online 1987-05
Prosocial Activity of an Independent Self-Help Organization in Poland: Some Applications of Behavioral Science during the 1981-1984 Socioeconomic Crisis
This article discusses the formation of an independent self-help organization to provide aid to the scientific community of Cracow, Poland, during the 1981-1984 socioeconomic crisis. The author, a Polish research psychologist, was one of the creators of this aid group, which sought to apply behavioral science knowledge to the distribution and sharing of material aid In doing so, principles and criteria for aid distribution were devised for distributing aid, developing an organizational structure for satisfying the recipients' basic needs, and creating and applying an organizational style that could meet the recipients' psychological and social needs while protecting their self-concept Nine academic help committees administered aid to as many as 4500 families. In discussing the practice and theory of the organization, activity, and aid-sharing style of this structure, the author presents a hypothetical aid model The author encourages research on group helping behavior and the gradual creation of an interdisciplinary body of applied behavioral science knowledge on organized help.
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