Transcript Chapter 16: Social Change: Looking Toward Tomorrow

Chapter 16
Social Change:
Looking Toward
Tomorrow
1
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
What is Social Change?

2
Sociologists define social change as the
transformation of a culture over time. Some
changes are deliberate or intended, while
others are unplanned or unintentional. Some
changes are more controversial than others.
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
What is Social Change? (cont’d)

3
There are several ways that social change can
occur. One way is through a major physical
event (hurricanes, earthquakes, or volcanic
eruptions). Demographic factors can also lead
to social change (for example, the aging of
baby boomers).
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
What is Social Change? (cont’d)

4
Another source of social change lies in
discoveries and innovations (fire or the
wheel). The most important contributions to
social change have been made through
collective action (the civil rights movement).
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Collective Behavior

5
Collective behavior refers to behavior that
emerges from the formation of a group or
crowd of people who together take action
toward a shared goal. Collective behavior
theories suggest that such occurrences are
often organized and maintain a certain amount
of order.
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Collective Behavior (Cont’d)

6
Contagion theory, one of the earliest theories
of collective action, suggests that individuals
who join a crowd or mob become “infected”
by a mob mentality and lose the ability to
reason.
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Collective Behavior (Cont’d)

7
Emergent norm theory assumes individual
members of a crowd make their own
decisions about behavior and that norms are
created through others’ acceptance or
rejection of these behaviors.
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Collective Behavior (Cont’d)

8
Collective behavior generally can take three
different forms: crowd behavior, mass
behavior, and social movements. A crowd is a
temporary gathering of individuals, whether
spontaneous or planned, who share a common
focus. A riot is continuous disorderly behavior
by a group of people that disturbs the peace
and is directed toward other people and/or
property.
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Collective Behavior (Cont’d)

9
Mass behavior occurs when large groups of
people engage in similar behaviors without
necessarily being in the same place. Fads are
interests or practices followed enthusiastically
for a relatively short period of time. Fashion
refers to the widespread custom or style of
behavior and appearance at a particular time
or in a particular place.
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Collective Behavior (Cont’d)

10
A social dilemma is caused when behavior
that is rational for the individual can, when
practiced by many people, lead to collective
disaster.
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Collective Behavior (Cont’d)

11
The two classes of social dilemmas are the
tragedy of the commons (a situation in which
many individuals’ over-exploitation of a
public resource depletes or degrades that
resource) and the public goods dilemma (a
situation in which individuals must incur a
cost to contribute to a collective resource,
though they might not benefit from that
resource).
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Collective Behavior (Cont’d)

12
A social movement refers to any social group
with the leadership, organization, and an
ideological commitment to promote or resist
social change. Mass society theory assumes
people join social movements to satisfy a
psychological need to belong to something
larger than themselves.
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Collective Behavior (Cont’d)

13
Relative deprivation theory is a theory of
social movements that focuses on the actions
of oppressed groups who seek rights or
opportunities already enjoyed by others in the
society. Resource mobilization theory focuses
on the practical constraints that help or hinder
social movements’ action.
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Collective Behavior (Cont’d)

14
Armand Mauss identified the four stages that social
movements tend to go through. The first stage is the
incipient stage—when the public takes notice of a
situation and defines it as a problem. During the
second stage, people begin to organize. The third
stage is characterized by the movement becoming
bureaucratized. Finally, the movement enters the
fourth stage and eventually begins to decline.
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Emergent Social Movements:
Promoting and Resisting Change

15
Because society is constantly changing, new
social movements and different opportunities
for activism (any activity intended to bring
about social change) are constantly emerging.
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Emergent Social Movements: Promoting
and Resisting Change (Cont’d)

16
Some emerging social movements are
regressive (a term describing resistance to
particular social changes, efforts to maintain
the status quo, or attempts to re-establish an
earlier form of social order), while others are
more progressive (a term describing efforts to
promote forward-thinking social change).
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Technology and Social Change

17
Sociologists have developed a number of
theories to explain the role of technology in
social change. One common characteristic of
these theories is an emphasis on technological
determinism (the idea that technology plays a
defining role in shaping society).
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Technology and Social Change
(cont’d)

18
Cultural lag refers to the time between
changes in material culture or technology and
the resulting changes in the broader culture’s
relevant norms, values, meanings, and laws.
Cultural diffusion refers to the spread of
material and non-material culture to new
cultural groups regardless of the movement of
people.
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Technology and Social Change (con’t)

19
Cultural imperialism refers to cultural
influence caused by adopting another
culture’s products rather than by an imposing
military force. Cultural leveling is the process
by which societies lose their uniqueness and
become increasingly similar.
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Implications for a Postmodern World

20
Technology will continue to play an
increasingly important role in almost every
aspect of people’s lives as society continues
its transformation from a modern society to a
postmodern society.
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Implications for a Postmodern World
(Cont’d)

21
Modernity refers to the social conditions and
attitudes characteristic of industrialized
societies, including the decline of tradition, an
increase in individualism, and a belief in
progress, technology, and science.
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Implications for a Postmodern World
(cont’d)

22
Postmodernity refers to the social conditions
and attitudes characteristic of postindustrialized societies, including a focus on
the production and management of
information, and skepticism of science and
technology.
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Concept Quiz
1. Large groups of people engaging in similar behavior
without necessarily being in the same place is called:
a. collective behavior.
b. emergent behavior.
c. mass behavior.
d. progressive behavior.
23
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Concept Quiz
2. A type of social dilemma in which individuals must
incur a cost to contribute to a collective resource is
called the:
a. tragedy of the commons.
b. collective cost dilemma.
c. public goods dilemma.
d. social contribution dilemma.
24
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Concept Quiz
3. Which theory of social movements focuses on the
actions of oppressed groups who seek rights and
opportunities already enjoyed by others in society?
a. Relative deprivation theory
b. Emergent norm theory
c. Mass society theory
d. Contagion theory
25
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Concept Quiz
4. The fact that MTV can now be seen in about 166
countries is an example of:
a. cultural determinism.
b. cultural leveling.
c. cultural diffusion.
d. cultural lag.
26
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Concept Quiz
5. According to the text, which of the following is NOT
a characteristic of postmodernity?
a. Skepticism of new technology
b. Focus on the production of information
c. Focus on ideas and cultural debates
d. A strong belief in science
27
The Real World
Copyright © 2008 W.W. Norton & Company, Inc.