Keough, NoelHarper, ThomasRanasinghe, Srimal Isaac2018-02-222018-02-222018-02Ranasinghe, S. I. (2018). The Engaged Community: Trust-Building within Public Engagement toward Community Development (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/5475http://hdl.handle.net/1880/106401This phenomenological inductive study addresses the issue of trust-building within the process of public engagement toward community development. The proposed engagement framework drew on data collected in the community of Marlborough, situated in the western Canadian city of Calgary, the Trust Confidence Cooperation (TCC) Model of cooperation, and the theories of social capital, equity planning, and complex systems. Key findings that emerged during the study indicate that trust and social capital are important to the success of conventional engagement methods such as surveys/questionnaires and open houses. The core attributes of a trust-building engagement process are positive outcomes, a relational approach, diversity, collaboration, physical presence, social capital, effective communication, customization, managing expectations, an adaptive approach, and dialogue. This study also proposes recommendations that address both process-level and systemic issues in the process of public engagement toward community development. Among others, these include: the need for adaptive governance structures that allow flexibility and customization, that community development processes be subsumed by a relational trust-building public engagement process, emphasizing cross-disciplinary collaboration, and managing community expectations through clear communication devoid of jargon.engUniversity of Calgary graduate students retain copyright ownership and moral rights for their thesis. You may use this material in any way that is permitted by the Copyright Act or through licensing that has been assigned to the document. For uses that are not allowable under copyright legislation or licensing, you are required to seek permission.Public engagementcommunity engagementCommunity developmenttrustconfidencesocial capitalequity planningcity makingEducation--Social SciencesPublic and Social WelfareUrban and Regional Planningmaster thesis10.11575/PRISM/5475