SCI - Collective Behavior and Social Movements Lesson

 

Collective Behavior and Social Movements Lesson

In order to understand social change, we need to understand behavior, especially the forms of behavior that often lead to social change such as collective behavior and social movements.  Collective behavior  is difficult to define within the context of social change alone. The term implies and is often used, outside of sociology, to refer to any behavior carried out by a large group of people. That includes a lot of scenarios, not many of which have implications for social change. Therefore, within the context of social change, sociologists define collective behavior as an activity involving a large number of people that is unplanned, often controversial, and sometimes dangerous.   Furthermore, the use of the term "collective behavior" is limited to those activities that do not reflect society's existing social structure  in the form of its social institutions  and norms. As the term implies, though, it is a behavior driven by group dynamics since a large number of people must participate in order to be a "collective."  

If defining "collective behavior" is difficult, studying it is even more problematic. Collective behavior appears in many forms ranging from the comparatively harmless form of fashions  and fads  to the potentially more destructive mobs  and riots, with all manner of forms in between. Collective behavior is inconstant, meaning it blows hot and cold. Fashion is a perfect example. What was hot yesterday and seen everywhere might be cold tomorrow and impossible to find. Along with collective behavior's inconstancy is the fact that it is also short-lived. Collective behavior is not like our social institutions that last through generations of a society. Rather, collective behavior is transitory.   One minute there's a riot and the next it is over. The diversity of what constitutes collective behavior, its variability and its life span causes problems for sociologists trying to pinpoint exactly what role collective behavior has on social change.

All collective behavior involves a large grouping  of people, but it is important to note that this grouping, or "collectivity," is not an actual "group" as defined within sociology.  The people who make up a collectivity  have little to no social interaction with one another and that is a crucial component of what defines a group.  As the people forming a collectivity do not necessarily interact, they do not form a unit identity as is formed by a group. Members of groups have social boundaries- they can identify who belongs within the group and who belongs outside of the group. A collectivity is just not unified in the same way. One of the ways that groups are able to identify fellow group members is through the establishment and obedience to norms within the group. While collectivities do follow societal norms, in general, they do not cultivate norms of their own.

 

Localized Collectivity

The forms of collective behavior are categorized within two types based on geographical proximity. The first type, the localized collectivity, is a large number of people who are physically close to one another. Localized collectivities manifest as crowds, mobs and riots through crowd behavior.

One type of crowd can morph into another type of crowd at any point during its life span. After identifying the distinctions between the types of crowds, sociologists went to work explaining their behaviors.

Theories on Crowd Behavior

• Contagion Theory  - Developed by Gustave Le Bon  who emphasized the irrationality of crowd behavior, Contagion Theory claims that crowds have a hypnotic effect on people. The behavior of the crowd is contagious as participants in the crowd blend into one another and achieve a sort of anonymity that "frees" them of personal responsibility for following societal norms as they succumb to the emotions of the crowd at large and adapt their individual behavior to that of the crowd.
• Convergence Theory  - In direct contrast with the Contagion Theory, the Convergence Theory argues that crowd behavior originates with the individuals who created the crowd in the first place. According to this theory, like-minded people converge and unite in their desire to behave in a certain way which explains the presence of a crowd behavior.
• Emergent-Norm Theory  - Ralph Turner and Lewis Killian  developed a theory that seems to fall in the middle-ground between the Contagion and Convergence Theories. Emergent-Norm Theory claims that no social behavior is 100% foreseeable but if collectivities form around similar interests then behavioral patterns will materialize. However, as time passes, the crowd's behavior will adjust to the changing needs and emotions and people within the crowd will take on new roles and behaviors based on the crowd behavior.

 

Dispersed Collectivity

The second type of collective behavior categorized by physical proximity is the dispersed collectivity.  Dispersed collectivities manifest as rumors, gossip, public opinion, propaganda, fashions, fads, panic, mass hysteria, and reactions to disasters through mass behavior.

So what do crowds, mobs, riots, rumors, gossip, public opinion, propaganda, fashions, fads, panic, mass hysteria, disasters- in short, collective behavior- have to do with social change? In all of these forms of collective behavior, the people involved gain an element of societal power, perhaps not the type of authority found within social institutions, but social power all the same. With power comes the means to affect change.

 

Social Movements

As explained in the definition of collective behavior, there is no set amount of time that it lasts.  When a collective behavior does not burn out quickly, it has the potential to grow into a social movement  as the collectivity involved begins to interact with one another and evolve into a group. A social movement is a type of group action. It is an organized activity that encourages or discourages social change. Social movements can originate from either localized or dispersed collective behaviors and they can result in the creation of countermovements. There are many theories as to why social movements arise and what they need:

 

Types of Social Movements

All social movements are distinguished as a collective behavior by their defining of a social problem that must be addressed.  Social movements define the problem that unites them through claims making .  This is the process through which a group prevails upon society the need to address an issue at the heart of the social movement and to join in the cause. If the group is successful in defining a social problem and receives public attention for that problem, the group expands into a social movement. There are four different types of social movements that are based on two questions: Who will be affected by a potential change?  And how much change is sought?  The four types are illustrated in the chart below.

 

Alternative Social Movements Chart image description Links to an external site.

 

• Alterative Social Movements  - strive for a small social change among a limited portion of a society's population (this type of movement seeks change at the individual level- an example might be the  100 Black Men, Inc. movement which hopes to alter individuals) also known as alternative social movement. The 100 Black Men, Inc. is a civic organization whose goal is to educate and empower black children and teens. It began in 1963. Two of their most-often used quotes are "Real men giving real time." And "What they see is what they'll be."
• Redemptive Social Movements  - strive for a more profound social change among a limited portion of a society's population. This type of movement seeks change also at the individual level but with a more extreme result- the  LGBT rights movement is an example.  The LGBT rights movement is seeking to change societal norms for the specific population that makes up the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community. Among the goals of this movement are to have laws changed to recognize marital, employment, adoption, and civil rights for the LGBT community specifically.
• Reformative Social Movements- strive for a small social change among all members of a society. This type of movement seeks to reform society in one particular area such as the  Farm Sanctuary movement. The Farm Sanctuary's website proclaims a desire to rescue, educate and advocate in the area of farm animals. Their mission is to change how society treats farm animals, educate society on alternative food sources, and push legislation through the government to change the way farming is practiced. Their goal is a comprehensive overhaul, but on just one issue.
• Revolutionary Social Movements- strive for a more profound social change among all of society. This type of movement seeks to completely overhaul a society by transforming the social structure and institutions- the  Tea Party movement reflects this type well. The Tea Party as a political social movement is seeking to bring changes to all of the social institutions in the United States family, education, religion, politics, economy, health and welfare.

Once a social movement emerges, it undergoes different states of being. Stage 1 is called Emergence. This is when a social movement identifies a social problem that needs to be addressed through civic dialogue  and begins to gather activists. Stage 2 is called Coalescence. After identifying the social problem, the social movement unites its efforts behind building financial and human resources, spreading awareness among the society at large, and forming alliances with other social groups through community building. Stage 3 is called Bureaucratization and comes when the social movement is a recognized organization with an understood mission. During this stage, the social movement depends on the strength of those working for it rather than the individuals who first led the charge. Possible experiences for the social movement really open up during this stage of civic engagement  and community development  and it is at this point that social capital  is crucial to the movement's future. The social movement can meet its goal, such as what happened in 1920 for the National American Woman Suffrage Association as the United States amended the Constitution to grant women the right to vote.  The social movement can fall apart due to organizational failures, such as what happened to the Students for a Democratic Society during their 1969 convention which resulted in the demise of the movement as factions split it apart from within. Another way a social movement can fall apart is if the movement did not spread its ability past one charismatic leader who either leaves the movement or allows the movement to be incorporated within another organization, such was the case of the Free Soil Party of the 1800s that organized to prevent the spread of slavery and eventually was absorbed into the Republican Party. Not all social movements fall apart from within, though. Some are repressed by powerful individuals or countermovements from without, such as the communist party in America experienced during the 1950s as members were publicly vilified, black-balled from job opportunities, or arrested. Not all social movements end in either complete success or dismal failure. There is one last option for the future of a social movement, that of "going mainstream."  The goal of a social movement can be adopted by so many people that the movement becomes incorporated within society's behavior. This is what happened to the labor movement. No longer is the goal of safeguarding workers and protecting their wages the sole responsibility of labor unions as many American politicians have picked up the mantle and have used it to get elected and to push through pro-labor legislation within the government.  Once a social movement experiences one of the previous scenarios, it will often go into the fourth stage called Decline. See the illustration below for a visual aid about what you just learned.

 

Social Change Key Terms Review Activity

As you prepare to take your Social Change Key Terms Quiz, use the crossword activity below as part of your review. 

 

Use the flash cards below to continue your review of key terms from the Collective and Social Movement Lesson.  Turn each card to reveal the definition.  Use the  > to advance through cards.

 

IMAGES CREATED BY GAVS OR OPENSOURCE