social change
the transformation of a culture over time
collective behavior
behavior that follows from the formation of a group or crowd of people who take action together toward a shared goal
contagion theory
one of the earliest theories of collective action; suggested that individuals who joined a crowd could become "infected" by a mob mentality and lose the ability to reason
emergent theory
a theory od collective behavior that assumes individual members of a crowd make their own decisions about behavior and that norms are created through other's acceptance of these behaviors
crowd
a temporary gathering of individuals, whether spontaneous or planned, who share a common focus
riot
continuous disordly behavior by a group of people that disturbs the peace and is directed toward other people and or property
mass behavior
large groups of people engaging in similar behaviors without necessarily being in the same place
fads
interests or practices followed enthusiastically for a relatively short period of time
fashion
the widespread custom ot style of behavior and appearance at a particular time or place
socila dilemma
a situation in which behavior that is rational for the individual can, when practiced by many people, lead to collective disaster
tragedy of the commons
a particular type of social dilemma in which many individuals' overexploitation of a public resource depletes or degrades that common resource
public good dilemma
a type of social dilemma in which individuals incur the cost to contribute to a collective resource, though the may never benefit from that resource
social movement
any social groups with leadership, organization, and an ideological commitment to promote or resist social change
mass social theory
a theory of social movement that assumes people join not because of the movement's ideals but to satisfy a psychological need to belong to something larger than themselves
relative deprivation theory
a theory of social movements that focuses on the actions of the oppressed groups who seek rights or opportunities already enjoyed by others in the society
resource mobilization theory
a theory of social movements that focuses on the practical constraints that help or hinder social movements' action
The Four Stages of Social Movement
Incipient
Coalescence
Bureaucratization
Decline
activism
any activity intended to bring about social change
regressive
term describing resistance to particular social changes, efforts to maintain the status quo, or attempts to reestablish and earlier form of social order
progressive
term describing efforts to promote forward-thinking social change
technological determinism
a theory of social change that assumes changes in technology drive changes in society rather than vice versa
cultural lag
the time between changes in material culture or technology and the resulting changes in the broader culture's relevant norms, values, meanings, and laws
virtual community
a community of people linked by their consumption of the same digital media
global village
Marshall McLuhan's term describing the way that new communication technologies override barriers of space and time, joining together people all over the globe
cultural diffusion
the dissemination of beliefs and practices from on group to another
globalization
the increasing connections between economic, social, and political systems all over the globe
cultural imperialism
cultural influence caused by adopting another culture's products
cultural leveling
the process by which societies lose their uniqueness, becoming increasingly similar
modernity
a term encompassing the forms of social organization that characterize industrialized societies, including the decline of tradition, an increase in individualism, and a belief in progress, technology, and science
postmodernity
a term encompassing the forms of social organization characteristics of postindustrial societies, including a focus on the production and management of information and skepticism of science and technology