Editing Empowerment (section)

==Definitions==
Robert Adams points to the limitations of any single definition of 'empowerment', and the danger that academic or specialist definitions might take away the word and the connected practices from the very people they are supposed to belong to.<ref>Adams, Robert. ''Empowerment, participation and social work''. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2008, p.6.</ref> Still, he offers a minimal definition of the term: 
'Empowerment: the capacity of individuals, groups and/or communities to take control of their circumstances, exercise power and achieve their own goals, and the process by which, individually and collectively, they are able to help themselves and others to maximize the quality of their lives.'<ref>Adams, Robert. ''Empowerment, participation and social work''. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2008, p.xvi</ref>

One definition for the term is "an intentional, ongoing process centered in the local community, involving mutual respect, critical reflection, caring, and group participation, through which people lacking an equal share of resources gain greater access to and control over those resources".<ref>Cornell Empowerment Group. (1989, October). Empowerment and family support. Networking Bulletin, 1(1)2</ref><ref>Zimmerman, M.A. (2000). Empowerment Theory: Psychological, Organizational and Community Levels of Analysis. "Handbook of Community Psychology," 43–63.</ref>

Rappaport's (1984) definition includes: "Empowerment is viewed as a process: the mechanism by which people, organizations, and communities gain mastery over their lives."<ref>Rappaport, J. (1984). Studies in empowerment: Introduction to the issue. "Prevention in Human Services," 3, 1–7.</ref>

Sociological empowerment often addresses members of groups that social discrimination processes have excluded from decision-making processes through – for example – discrimination based on disability, [[Race (classification of human beings)|race]], ethnicity, religion, or gender. Empowerment as a methodology is also associated with [[feminism]].