How can we tell when and whether a community is sufficiently 'developed'?

In this view, the people are the "basic units" of the system, and they aggregate into groups, both small and large. In any workable community there will be a characteristic size mix of these elements (groups), definable by certain mathematical distributions. Too many large groups can lead to rigidity, and too many small groups can lead to fragmentation; we need a moderate mix of the two. And here is our first pointer to a community development "rule of thumb": the community is not sufficiently developed if there is a "group size" imbalance.

The community development worker, besides improving the individual human capital of the community (that is, working with the people), needs to keep one eye on the overall composition of the community - and be prepared to amalgamate or split groups as necessary to keep the "organism" balanced and adaptive. A corollary to that rule might be that the "death" of some groups is not necessarily a bad thing, it may lead to a more balanced whole. The urge to keep all groups "alive" - and attendant panic by some community workers when groups start to fail - may (sometimes) be misplaced. As may the urge to "keep developing", where "developing" means starting more and more small groups …

Communities are self-organising, left to their own devices. When the community development team rides into town, the tendency is to "do something" in order to satisfy the shire, or the agency, or the residents. Yet "doing something" may be the wrong thing to do. There is an old tale about the difference between American and Japanese management styles: Faced with a crisis, the Americans "do something, anything" while the Japanese do nothing, just watch to see how the system responds.

This may often be the best approach to "community development" (but don't tell your boss) - when in doubt, do nothing. Let that group fall over, let that attempted grouping fail. Wait, and see how the (self-organising, adaptive) community responds.

If it rises over the ashes, it may very well be developed…

"Govern a country as you would cook a small fish" (Tao Te Ching). And don't overcook your community.