This chapter talks about social change and how it happens and the theories behind social movements. The five essay questions at the end of this chapter are answered below.
The first question was, “Discuss the four types of social movements and the features of each one. The four types of social movements are alternative social movement, redemptive social movement, reformative social movement, and revolutionary social movement. The alternative social movement is defined as, “a want to create a change in specific people’s thoughts, practices, and beliefs regarding a particular issue.” “Their goal is to encourage a small, defined change in the way a particular group of people think and act in order to solve a problem” (Carl 308). Mothers against drunk driving (MADD) are an example of an alternative social movement because it targets one behavior-- drunk driving. Through its efforts, MADD has caused tougher drunk driving laws to be enacted, and lead to changes peoples ' behavior.Now, the redemptive social movement, “focus on specific individuals, but the amount of change sough is radical, rather than limited.” A good example would include the American Civil Rights Movement which demanded full civil rights and equality under the law to all Americans, regardless of race. Next is the reformative social movements, “seek to change a society’s thoughts and actions, but only in a limited way.” “This type of movement can be progressive, favoring or promoting change, or regressive, seeking to stop change” (Carl 309). For instance abortion is supported by many, but people also do not support it. Many people want abortion to be made illegal because of religious and moral reasoning whil...
... middle of paper ...
...s most effective at mobilizing “wins” the conflict” (Carl 312). Lastly some symbolic interactionists believe, “that social movements are caused by the perception of relative deprivation. When people’s expectations are not met, they are discontent. If their expectations are continually not met, they are likely to resort to social movements” (Carl 312).
The last question asked, “How does the environmental movement Hawken discusses differ from other social movement?” An environmental movement does not only affect one group, but every person from country to country as a whole. This movement is one of the largest problem humans have faced so far because everyone has to change the way they live. Many people do not care, but I and others in this world do. This movement is also different because people and organizations have to join together to help make that difference.
Need Writing Help?
Get feedback on grammar, clarity, concision and logic instantly.Check your paper »
- There is a wide collection of definitions of what social movements are. Social movements generally are one of the fundamental social forms through which a number of organized and coordinated people work together to support a social goal, usually a change in the society’s values or structure, or to bring about social change. Social movements can be different sizes, but they are basically collective, they usually involve people who come together spontaneously sharing a common view of the society. They are sustained campaigns through which the people of democratic societies raise awareness of the different concerns about the welfare, rights and the well being of everyone.... [tags: Sociology, Social movement, Social movements]
1392 words (4 pages)
- When looking at new social movements of today, there is not a newness to them, just a different set of claims, making it more so an evolution with a focus on quality of life. Structurally speaking, social movements are the same, there are claim receivers and claim makers that are attempting to change some part of society. Logically, claim receivers and claim makers will change as the times and needs of claim makers change, especially when social movements are successful. Fundamentally, there has been no change in social movements.... [tags: Sociology, Social movement, New social movements]
982 words (2.8 pages)
- In order to understand the particular relationship which an individual who actively pursues the transformation of a vision for positive social change into a reality has with the external power resources required to manifest such a reality, it is necessary to have a minimal understanding of the specific power resources engaged. One specific power resource which has historically been employed as a vehicle of change is that of a social movement. Social Movements Defined In general, social movements have been identified as being “an answer to a threat or hope that is directly linked to the control that a social group has over its capacity to make decisions, to control changes” (Tourain... [tags: Poverty, Agriculture, Social movement]
775 words (2.2 pages)
- As society redevelops itself and progresses to keep up with the ever changing dynamics of its citizens, social movements are an outlet available to bring about change within the law. Social movement is a broad term and often can have specific goals and targets in mind, when trying to mobilize the law. "Social movements are collective actors or groups that seek a common goal or express a common identity; targets may include states, society, corporations, and/or social norms and values. May be conservative or progressive" (Hilson, 2002).... [tags: Common Goals, Society, Abortions, Pro Choice]
2239 words (6.4 pages)
- what happened on that day. Had these videos not been available, perhaps the people of the time would know about this event through newspapers (such as the one from the New York Times) or eyewitness accounts. However, eventually the evidence of an event like this would disappear in a nation where anything that would lead to a social movement is censored. The main reason oppressive governments aim specifically at preventing social movements from developing is due to the fact that they have the ability to change said society.... [tags: Sociology, Social movement]
1048 words (3 pages)
- This essay will examine the influences of organisations and communities in causing social change and effects on people’s behaviour through looking at areas of management; the characteristics of organisations; formed of groups of people with shared purposes in a community, showing how organisations can affect people’s behaviour, by using psychology to look at how the impact of taking on roles in an organisation can influence people’s behaviour through ‘Social identity theory’ using the Social science to examine how social movements involve both organisations and communities to bring about social change .... [tags: Sociology, Social movement, Management, Identity]
1255 words (3.6 pages)
- Breaking things down into sections would be something that could and can help understand some concepts and theories as to what people might find to be effective modes of action dealing with collective action. The question some studies do cover and literary works go over on is if it is a suitable outlet/forum for collective action at best (Brustings and Postimes,2002), the other portion that would get most people thinking especially research analysis concerning this very issue would have to be is examining the movements motives for wanting to see what the participation level in the concepts of collective action with a focus on their motives for offline then follow through with online actions.... [tags: Sociology, Social network service, Egypt]
1547 words (4.4 pages)
- A social movement can be loosely defined as a group in society united by a common belief or goal, and lacking distinct organisational structure . The broad nature of this definition aligns with the nature of social movements themselves, as a social movement can lend itself to a wide array of issues. Some of these gather momentum and manage to influence the political sphere of the time, and others seemingly do not get off the ground. Australia has indeed seen its fair share of social movements. In this essay, I will be discussing and comparing three social movements; environmentalism, anti war/peace movement and Indigenous rights, and measuring their success, commenting on their relevance to... [tags: environmental, indigenous land rights]
1686 words (4.8 pages)
- Introduction Why is it that specific movements succeed in broadening the scope and scales of the struggle, whereas other do not. Given the dearth of resources at their disposal, social movements see to attract the attention, empathy, and support of third parties, as a way to balance the unfavorable asymmetric power structure in which they are situated. The importance of expanding the scope of contention and attracting supporters become even more critical in cases of ethnic driven movements, given the nature of their goals and the frequency with which restrictions are imposed on their collective sentiments by the state.... [tags: Sociology ]
1758 words (5 pages)
- Analysis of New Social Movement Theory Works Cited Not Included In Johnston, Laraña, and Gusfield’s discussion of New Social Movement (NSM) theory, they identify the concept as a “double-edged sword,” in that is has both related itself to the changing shape of society but also overemphasized the newness of its model, almost divorcing itself from previous social movement theories instead of acknowledging and assessing the similarities between them and integrating what is useful from theories of the past.... [tags: Sociology Social Movements Essays]
1014 words (2.9 pages)