Collective Behavior - Sociological Imagination - Lecture Slides, Slides of Sociology

Download Collective Behavior - Sociological Imagination - Lecture Slides and more Slides Sociology in PDF only on Docsity! Chapter 16 Collective Behavior, Social Movements, and Social Change docsity.com Questions for you… • What social factors mobilize people to begin a social movement? • In your opinion, which social movement of the 20th century had the greatest impact on social change? • How many social movements have you witnessed in your lifetime? • What are the different types of crowds? docsity.com Factors That Contribute to Collective Behavior 1. Structural factors that increase the chances of people responding in a particular way. 2. Timing in history of particular social event. 3. Breakdown in social control mechanisms and corresponding feeling of normlessness. docsity.com How Much Do You Know About Collective Behavior and Environmental Issues? • True or False? – The environmental movement in the United States started in the 1960s. docsity.com How Much Do You Know About Collective Behavior and Environmental Issues? • False. – The environmental movement in the United States is the result of more than 100 years of collective action. – The first environmental organization, the American Forestry Association (now American Forests), originated in 1875. docsity.com Types of Crowd Behavior • Casual crowds - people who happen to be in the same place at the same time. • Conventional crowds - people who come together for a scheduled event and share a common focus. • Protest crowds - crowds that engage in activities intended to achieve political goals. docsity.com Types of Crowd Behavior • Expressive crowds - people releasing emotions with others who experience similar emotions. • Acting crowds - collectivities so intensely focused that they may erupt into violent behavior. docsity.com Polling Question • Have you ever participated in an organized protest? A. Yes B. No docsity.com Social Movement Theories Relative Deprivation People compare achievements, become discontent and join social movements to get their “fair share”. Resource Mobilization People participate in social movements when the movement has access to key resources. docsity.com Mass Behavior • Mass behavior is collective behavior that takes place when people (who often are geographically separated from one another) respond to the same event in much the same way. docsity.com Rumors and Gossip • Rumors are unsubstantiated reports on an issue or subject (Rosnow and Fine, 1976). – Rumors thrive when tensions are high and when little authentic information is available on an issue of great concern. – Whereas rumors deal with an issue or a subject, gossip refers to rumors about the personal lives of individuals. docsity.com Public Opinion • Public opinion consists of the attitudes and beliefs communicated by ordinary citizens to decision makers (Greenberg and Page, 2002). • Scholars who examine public opinion are interested in the extent to which the public’s attitudes are communicated to decision makers and the effect (if any) that public opinion has on policy making (Turner and Killian, 1993). • Propaganda is information provided by i di id l h h d docsity.com Social Movements • A social movement is an organized group that acts consciously to promote or resist change through collective action (Goldberg, 1991). • Because social movements have not become institutionalized and are outside the political mainstream, they offer outsiders an opportunity to have their voices heard. docsity.com Social Movement Theories • Relative Deprivation Theory – People who are satisfied with their present condition are less likely to seek social change. Social movements arise as a response to people’s perception that they have been deprived of their “fair share” (Rose,1982). docsity.com Resource Mobilization Theory • Focuses on the ability of members of a social movement to acquire resources and mobilize people in order to advance their cause (Oberschall, 1973; McCarthy and Zald, 1977). • Resources include money, people’s time and skills, access to the media, and material goods, such as property and equipment. • Assistance from outsiders is essential for social movements. docsity.com Political Opportunity Theory • Social protests are directly related to the political opportunities that potential protesters and movement organizers believe exist within the political system at any given point in time. • Based on the assumption that social protests that take place outside of mainstream political institutions are deeply intertwined with more conventional political activities that take place inside these institutions. docsity.com New Social Movement Theory • Looks at a diverse array of collective actions and the manner in which those actions are based on politics, ideology, and culture. • Examples of “new social movements” include ecofeminism and environmental justice movements. docsity.com Types of Social Movements • Alternative movements seek limited change in some aspect of people's behavior. • Resistance movements seek to prevent or undo change that has already occurred. docsity.com Stages in Social Movements • Preliminary stage - people begin to become aware of a threatening problem. • Coalescence stage - people begin to organize and start making the threat known to the public. • Institutionalization stage - organizational structure develops. docsity.com Social Change in the Future • In this chapter, we have focused on collective behavior and social movements as potential forces for social change in contemporary societies. • A number of other factors also contribute to social change, including the physical environment, population trends, technological development, and social institutions. docsity.com Answer: B • A relatively large number of people who are in one another's immediate vicinity is a crowd. docsity.com 2. Relatively large gatherings of people who happen to be in the same place at the same time are a(n): A. acting crowd B. expressive crowd C. casual crowd D. mob docsity.com Answer: C • Relatively large gatherings of people who happen to be in the same place at the same time are a casual crowd. docsity.com 4. Movements that seek limited change in some aspect of people's behavior are: A. alternative movements B. revolutionary movements C. religious movements D. resistance movements docsity.com Answer: A • Movements that seek limited change in some aspect of people's behavior are alternative movements. docsity.com 5. ________ is based on the assumption that participants in social movements are rational people. A. Relative deprivation theory B. Social constructionist theory C. Value added theory D. Resource mobilization theory docsity.com