Social Movements and Social Change

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Social Movements and Social Change
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Reading

• Social Change and Social Movements, chapter 21
  in Sociology by Rod Stark (2007)
• Soc Lexicon Final Deadline THIS FRIDAY!

3
Outline Social Movements and Collective Action

• What is Social Change?
• Collective action/social movements
• Irrational and Rational behavior
• Prisoners dilemma models
• Collective Goods and their provision
• leadership
• Production Functions
• Political Opportunity
• New Social Movements
• Effect of ECTs on social change

4
Organized Deviance/Social Change

• How do individuals get together to cause or
  prevent social change?
• To what degree are people able to shape history?
• Some say we are totally the creation of society
• history is our destiny
• Others say we have considerable freedom to make
  our own history
• free will

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Major Examples of Effective Social Movements in
the US

• Settlements for Religious Freedom (early
  colonists)
• Abolitionism
• Prohibition
• Labor Movement
• Civil Rights
• Womens Rights
• Anti-War movement
• Gay rights/AIDS activism
• Anti-globalization

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Major Approaches to Social Movements

• Collective behavior approach
• Emphasizes outbursts of activity as response to
  grievances
• Resource Mobilization approach
• Assumes largely constant grievances
• Focuses on
• Organization
• Leadership
• differential access to resources

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Collective Behavior

• Riots, panics, mobs, and other sorts of seemingly
  irrational behavior
• Triggered by values, grievances (complaints,
  worries, fears)
• What are your grievances?

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The Poor Peoples March on Washington
Womens Food Riot, 1940s
College Students Sit-in
Looting during a blackout
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The j-curve of grievances
Unmet expectations Crisis
Hopes for change
Actual changes
Time