The concept of empowerment introduces a new perspective into the discussion on social change. The paper presents the concept in all its complexity; based on an overview of a large body of heterogeneous literature, the following general features of empowerment as a concept and as practices were identified: its transformative, multi-level and context-dependent nature, the heterogeneity of its practices, and cooperation between actors as its precondition. Measuring the phenomenon has also been discussed. In exploratory empirical analysis using Slovenian public opinion survey data, selected preconditions of individual empowerment were observed; they were found weak in comparison to other countries, particularly the inclination to cooperate with others. Thus, in Slovenia the potential of empowerment as a specific transformative practice is established as specifically weak and calls for further exploration.
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