Social Change and Social Movements

SOCIAL CHANGE AND SOCIAL MOVEMENTS
Alejo-Alvarez-ArbonedaMalabad-Masesar-Sese-Villar

What is CHANGE?
• It is an enduring historical force

with noticeable variations through time. • It may be hardly discernable or easily observable; it may be constructive or destructive. • It occurs EVERYWHERE and EVERYTIME.

What is CHANGE?
• It is intertwined with established

patterns, particularly the socialization process.
Socialization makes for conformity and predictability of behavior; change for disruption of stable patterns and fostering of new modes of thinking and action.

• It has been regarded in many ways – as a means, process, and end, or even a social movement.

What is CHANGE?
• It involves a comparison of the

past and the present in the hope for improvement, stability, or security in the future. • It is associated with progress which is only one of its aspects.

Examples
• The changed norms of the landlord tenant

relationship because of land reform • The significance of learning and adopting managerial skills in farming • The altered Filipino outlook and behavior toward foreigners and foreign things • Changes in social mobility and social stratification among Filipinos because of the acceptance and adoption of western value and behavior patterns

SOCIAL Change
• Variations or modifications in the patterns of

social organization, of sub-groups within a society, or the entire society itself. • May be manifested in the fall or rise of groups, communities, or institutional structures and functions. • It can also be manifested in the changes in statuses and roles of members in the family, work setting, church, school, government, health and welfare, leisure, and other subsystems of the social organization.

LEVELS OF HUMAN ACTION AND CHANGE

• INDIVIDUAL PERSONALITY (First

Level) • INTERACTION AMONG INDIVIDUALS (Second Level) • GROUP OF SOCIAL SYSTEMS (Third Level) • CULTURAL SYSTEM (Fourth Level)

• Change is pervasive and is taking place in culture,

society, and personality. Changes in culture bring about changes in society and human beings; likewise, changes in society and human beings bring about the changes in culture. 1. The development of oral and written language and other means of communication 2. Modifications in technology 3. Shifts in economic principles 4. The historical evolution of religious ritual and dogma, educational philosophy and political ideology 5. Variations in musical styles and other art forms 6. Transitions in scientific theories 7. Alterations in the forms and rules of social interaction.

The Sources of Social Change
• Changes are also brought about by the

selective acceptance/addition or rejection/discarding of or the changed emphasis on existing elements. An element of culture is accepted, resisted or rejected not merely because it is fundamentally useful or useless but because of its relationship with the rest of the culture which may or may not assimilate it.

The Sources of Social Change
• Innovation/s (DISCOVERIES and INVENTIONS)

• Is any thought, behavior or thing that is new because it

is qualitatively different from existing forms. (Barnet). • It is the development or recognition of new elements or patterns (either material or non-material) in a culture. • It is always dependent upon a knowledge of existing culture, for it involves the reinterpretation or new combination of old culture traits or complexes, or the selection of elements from old patterns to create new patterns. • Innovation is itself a stimulus to further innovation.

Innovations can arise within the culture through DISCOVERY and INVENTION.
• Gillin and Gillin (1948:126) refer to

DISCOVERY as the initial awareness of the existing but formerly unobserved relationships of elements, of nature to human life. They become the mainsprings of inventions which are later diffused. • Examples:
• Discovery of fire, oil, of organisms and

substances, of diseases and their causes, the power of atom, and sources of energy.

• INVENTIONS are defined by Lundberg,

Schrag and Larsen (1958:711-715) as the result of the adjustment needs of some groups living and struggling together to achieve their goals. • According to H.G. Barnett (1953:82) , since inventions are technological innovations, they are the application of thoughts, behavior or things different in content and image from existing forms to the immediate and practical needs of human beings. • Inventions may be physical or social.

• PHYSICAL inventions are those which involve

changes in the ways which people deal with the natural environment and produce new goods and services. A very significant physical invention which has generated innumerable inventions is the WHEEL. • SOCIAL inventions are those which have to do primarily with modifications of the interpersonal and social relationships. LANGUAGE is perhaps the greatest not only of social inventions but of all inventions, for it has fostered other inventions like the alphabet, the Arabic and Roman numeral systems, musical notes, color schemes, the sign languages, the Morse code, forms of courtship, marriage and family life, systems of economy, education, forms of government and varied forms of symbolism.

Evolution
• Darwin’s theory of natural selection became the basis

for explaining the biological evolution. Spencer (1898) explained human development from amorphous to homogenous to specialized structures in a unilinear matter. • Sumner maintained that social change would come gradually. Changes in morality cannot be legislated but come about gradually. Ward held that change comes about through the synthesis of competing, conflicting, cooperating, integrating or compromising energies. • Marx identified conflict between the exploiters and the exploited as the hastening force in the evolutionary process.

Diffusion
• Is the spread of culture elements from an

individual or group to another belonging to the same society or to a different one. • In the process of diffusion, however, when innovations spread from one society to another, some modification takes place. The people who will accept or reject an innovation perceive it according to their way of life. • SYNCRETISM- retaining its original function but modifying it according to traditional patterns.

BARRIERS AND STIMULANTS TO SOCIAL CHANGE

CULTURAL
•Traditionalism
•Cultural Ethnocentrism •Pride and Dignity

•Norms of Society

SOCIAL BARRIERS
•Patterns of Cooperation •Patterns of Competition or

Conflict •Authority Patterns •Characteristics of the Social Structure

PSYCHOLOGICAL BARRIERS

•Differences in

Perception •Problems of Communicating and Learning

TYPES OF SOCIAL CHANGE
• Directed (guided, planned

structured) – occurs because there is a felt need. • Non-Directed (unplanned or unstructured) – is usually attributed to conditions arising from the unexpected circumstances.

THEORIES OF SOCIAL CHANGE

FUNCTIONALIST THEORY
• A sociological theory stating that a

society is comprised of interconnected parts, wherein each part constitute a specific function. These functions are also interdependent on other existing functions within a society. Designation and fulfillment of roles are vital in promoting solidarity and stability in an existing society.

CONFLICT THEORY
• A theory that expounds on the nonconformity of a

social group against an inherent political system, as resulted by cumulative inferiority felt by individuals that are attributed to social, political, and economic inequalities. Societies can best be understood by studying the conflict and power struggle between the capitalist and the working class (Marx). An integral feature of an existing social conflict is when people with common needs and interest untie and work together for goals that bring social change for their own welfare (Coser & Dahendorf).

EVOLUTIONARY THEORY
• Characterized primarily by assumption

of smooth, cumulative change, often in a linear fashion, and always in the direction of increasing complexity and adaptability. Evolutionary theories are based on the assumption that societies gradually change from simple beginnings into even more complex forms.

CYCLICAL THEORY

•A theory that argues that

events and stages of society and history are generally repeating over a considerable period of time.

MODERNIZATION THEORY
• A theory which is a description and

explanation of the processes of transformation from underdeveloped societies to modern societies. It is primarily concerned with the concept of Industrialization. Smelster (1996) conceives the processes that occur during economic development: technological, agricultural, industrial, and ecological.

What is SOCIAL MOVEMENT?
• It refers to a collective activity designed to

bring about or resist changes in the society. • Emphasizes social change and is characterized by the generalized, restless, random and spontaneous activities which develop into social unrest. • Important in a social movement is an ideology which is a statement of the beliefs, values, and norms of what the members are trying to achieve.

What is SOCIAL MOVEMENT?
• a social movement aims to bring about

some changes in the established folkways and mores of the past, thus it challenges the existing social order. • An issue or a problem is involved. They range from the short-lived organization to the widespread and extensive revolutionary movement. • the purpose of social movements is to promote or resist a change

TYPES OF SOCIAL MOVEMENTS

EXPRESSIVE MOVEMENTS
• form of dissent resulting from the existing structure of

power. • recruits are mostly from detached or dissatisfied people. • are least threatening to the status quo and power structure because they only seek limited change in individuals and are not concerned with changing the system. • Examples are the cultist movements like the Colorium movement in Quezon led by Ruperto de Dios in 1902 or the Lapiang Malaya by Valentin de los Santos in the 1960’s.

RESISTANCE MOVEMENT
• Aimed at existing trends in the society and is a kind of

reaction to the social order brought about by some form of structural strain. • The members consider the existing values and social institutions decadent and prefer to revert to the folkways and mores of a historical or idealized past. • a group or collection of individual groups, dedicated to opposing an invader in an occupied country or the government of a sovereign state. It may seek to achieve its objects through either the use of nonviolent resistance (sometimes called civil resistance) or the use of armed force. • Example is the Guerilla Movement during the Japanese Occupation.

REFORM MOVEMENT
• Is directed at changing certain aspects of social

classes or a segment of the power distribution of a social system. Its most common goal is to make the existing social structure work more effectively by extending certain rights or privileges to given groups. • They are generally interest movements designed specifically to aid their members. Sometimes, they act as pressure groups but are for promoting or resisting actual changes in social norms and values.

• Commonly, reformative movements use

the legal system to promote their ideas and will try to challenge what they consider to be unfair laws (Greenberg, 1994). If they do resort to unconventional social actions (marches, sit-ins, demonstrations), they will try to avoid violence. • Examples of this are the labor movement, Women’s Liberation Movement, and the Consumer’s movement.

REVOLUTIONARY MOVEMENT
• are not interested in working within the

system. For members of such movements, the system itself is the problem and it cannot be fixed; therefore, the only solution is to get rid of the system and replace it with a system that members think is better. • challenges the existing folkways and mores and proposes a new scheme of mores and values.

• It arises from an awareness of the

existence of oppression and injustice which becomes translated into social action. It has a long background of unrest and dissatisfaction among the people, but needs a precipitating crisis to start it. • It resorts to the use of violence, force and riots and if successful, established a revolutionary government. • Examples include the Philippine Revolution of 1896, the American Revolution of 1776, and the French Revolution of 1789.

THEORIES OF SOCIAL MOVEMENT

RELATIVE DEPRIVATION THEORY • developed by Denton Morrison (1971) is a more general theory about why individuals join social movements. A person experiences relative deprivation when she feels that she is not receiving her “fair share” of what seems to be available.

• Key to the idea of relative deprivation is the

notion of expectations, that is, what people think they deserve and want in life. If these expectations are met, people do not experience discontent or relative deprivation. • On the other hand, if people compare themselves to their reference groups and find that they have less, they will experience relative deprivation. If an individual feels that everyone else seems to be wealthier or generally seems to have it better, they will experience relative deprivation.

POLITICAL PROCESS THEORY
• Political process theory focuses rather on macro-

sociological issues that make social movements possible. For McAdam, economic and especially political factors are central to the emergence of social movements. More specifically, McAdam identifies three of such factors (Locher, 2002: 265): • Organizational strength: the more organized a group is, the more likely its members are to form a social movement and the more likely the movement will succeed; • Cognitive liberation: the more members think their chances of success are good, the more likely they are to make their movement will succeed; • Political opportunities: the more mainstream political allies a social movement has, the more likely it will succeed.

MASS-SOCIETY THEORY
• social movements are

composed of pariahs or socially detached people. Social movements provide people with a sense of empowerment and belonging. (Kornhauser)

STRUCTURAL-STRAIN THEORY
• 6 factors that encourage social

movements: (1) structural conduciveness, (2) structural strain, (3) growth and spread of a solution, (4) precipitating factors, (5) lack of social control, (6) mobilization (Smelser)

RESOURCE MOBILIZATION THEORY
• In 1973, Anthony Oberschall published Social Conflict

and Social Movements in which he formulated the resource mobilization theory focusing on the social and structural factors affecting a movement's success or failure rather than the factors motivating people to join social movements. Oberschall points out that relative deprivation cannot fully explain social movements because there is no perfect society that satisfies all its citizens. Discontent is a common feature. For Oberschall, the key factor in a social movement’s success or failure is its capacity to mobilize and efficiently manage resources.

TYPES OF RESOURCES:
• Material (money and physical capital) • Moral (solidarity, support for the

movement's goals) • Social-Organizational (organizational strategies, social networks, bloc recruitment) • Human (volunteers, staff, leaders) • Cultural (prior activist experience, understanding of the issues)

NEW SOCIAL MOVEMENTS THEORY
• The New Social Movements Theory

emerged at the end of the 1960s to account for changes in the composition, focus and strategies in some social movements in the Western world (Melucci, 1989; McAdam et al, 1988; Larana et al, 1994; Scott, 1995). New social movements themselves are a response to the massive social changes brought about by globalization.

• The major strength of the theory is to include the influence of

macro-sociological factors (economic, political and cultural globalization) in analyzing how collective actions and social movements form, focus, and strategize. The theory also captures how such macro-sociological change is reflected in micro-sociological concerns for social movement participants. For instance, the issue of identity is at the core of debates in many societies: • At the global level (are we becoming citizens of the global village? How should minorities be treated by government? What are the rights of indigenous populations?); • At the national level (in the face of globalization, what is the meaning of patriotism in the sense of blind obedience to one’s national government?); • And at the personal level (Who Am I? What are my different identities and how do they affect my quality of life and potential for self-determination?).

SOCIAL AND POLITICAL MOVEMENTS IN THE PHILIPPINES

THE PHILIPPINE REVOLUTION
• The Philippine Revolution was brought about

by the accumulation of grievances and resentments against the Spanish government, by various forces that led to the birth of Filipino nationalism, the rise of leaders and the founding of a secret organization with ideals that aroused the people into taking up the cause of the movement, and by precipitating forces that culminated in the outbreak of the Revolution.

• Period 1972-2002
• Total size 3.37 m. • After president Marcos declared Martial Law in 1972

(lifted in 1982) many individuals and groups joined revolutionary underground movements; from the mid1970s until the 1986 Presidential Snap Elections, peoples movements were organized to struggle against repression and to establish democracy; after 1986 onwards during the democratization period many non-governmental organizations were established on various social and political issues, a.o. the violation of human rights during the Aquino government from 1986-1992; from the early 1990s many political groups split up and after the latter part of the 1990s the economic crisis and the resulting impoverishment were main issues.

On November 16, 2004, twelve picketing farmers and two children were killed and hundreds were injured when police and soldiers dispatched by then Labor Secretary Patricia Santo Tomas, on behalf of the Cojuangco family, stormed a blockade by plantation workers. The protesters were pushing for fairer wages, increased benefits and, more broadly, a greater commitment for national land reform. Despite witness accounts of police, government soldiers and security personnel firing into the picket line, no arrests were made.

• The EDSA Revolution of 2001, also called

by the local media as EDSA II or the Second People Power Revolution, is the common name of the four-day revolution that peacefully overthrew Philippine President Joseph Estrada from January 17–20, 2001. Estrada was succeeded by his then vice-president Gloria MacapagalArroyo who was sworn into the presidency by then-Chief Justice Hilario Davide, Jr. at around noon on January 20, 2001 amidst the EDSA II crowd, several hours even before Estrada left Malacanang.

Sources:
• https://globalsociology.pbworks.com/w/pag

e/14711254/Social%20Movements • wikipedia.org • sociology.about.com • GENERAL SOCIOLOGY FOCUS ON THE PHILIPPINES • AN INTRODUCTION TO THEORIES OF SOCIAL CHANGE • INTRODUCING SOCIOLOGY