The importance of empowering settings as a vehicle for social change has been
documented in the community psychology literature. However, more research is needed to
understand the processes and mechanisms through which participation in a particular setting
may function as an empowering pathway for marginalised individuals. This research
investigated how Forum Peduli Difabel Bantul (FPDB), a local disability organisation in
Yogyakarta Province, Indonesia, has functioned as an empowering setting for its members.
Informed by the transformative paradigm in disability research and constructivist grounded
theory, the study examined the socio-psychological processes and mechanisms through which
this organisation has enabled its members to resist the pervasive discrimination and
marginalisation commonly imposed upon people with disability in the Indonesian society.
The research data were collected from various sources including interviews with 18 members
of FPDB, and were analysed using a grounded theory approach.