A vast group of online gamers calls itself a community. So do the six people who live in a small residence. Communities range far and wide, in physical locations and on the web. So what do we mean by community?   

In our wellbeing model, we are talking about societal groups that live in a defined geographical area and share physical and governmental resources. This kind of community exists at different levels, from neighborhoods to towns to states and countries.  

Community wellbeing is an interesting concept because it exists in the wellbeing of both:

• the individuals who make up that community
• the larger “superorganism” of the community (and in the norms and habits that arise within that community)

Of course, there is a great deal of interaction between individuals and their communities, with each directly influencing the other, as we shall see.