2. How Does Social Change Come
About?
The major question for sociologists has
always been:
How does social change come about?
Watch behaviours shift in groups and/or
societies
change is inevitable
3. Early Approaches
Debate as whether social
change was caused by a single
factor or the interplay of many
factors.
The theories of those who
believe that a single factor was
at work are called reductionist.
AKA - determinist , - a specific
factor will determine the nature of
social change that takes place.
Karl Marx sociological
4. Patterns of Behaviour
all human behaviour is
generally patterned (due
to societal norms) and
therefore potentially
predictable.
Therefore identification
of the patterns.
5. 4 Aspects of Social Change
1. Direction of change.
Is it positive or negative change? Who
says so? example
1. Rate of change.
Is the degree of change slow, moderate,
or fast? Is it radical change over a short
period, or slow change over decades?
What are the factors that affect this
rate? EXAMPLE
6. Analyzing Patterns of Behaviour
3. Sources.
Influences of change:
Exogenous influences are those that come from
another society into this one.
Endogenous influences are those that come
from within the society itself.
3. Controllability
To what degree can social change be controlled
or engineered?
For example, Hutterite communities tightly control
personal behaviour. No Exogenous influence.
EXAMPLE
8. Sociological Theories of Social
Change
• Originally dominated
by structural-
functionalists school
of thought.
• Tried to identify which
social institutions
were influential and
why these had
influence
9. Seeking Equilibrium
• Structural functionalism tension and
adaptation.
• This means that when one part of the social
system changes, tension arises between
that part and the rest.
10. • tension cannot be constant, so members try
to reduce tension by adapting other aspects of
society.
• Hence equilibrium is restored to society.
– Example: Depression of the 1930’s.
– 1980s El Salvador
11. Theoretical Model #1
• Accumulation model.
– The growth of human
knowledge from generation
to generation allows
society to develop new
ways of doing things.
– As economic or technical
changes take place in this
manner, social change
inevitably follows.
13. Theoretical Model #2
• Diffusion of innovations.
– A new development – an innovation –
emerges in society; This could be a technical
invention, or a piece of scientific knowledge
(belief, fashion etc)
– The innovation is diffused depending on:
• Who adopts it.
• Who speaks in its favour.
– Think of an innovation – what has made it popular at the
time? Why do some disappear and others endure?
Notes de l'éditeur
Example: the Circus bugs fail & their optionslook bleak. – direction of change? Negative. (for Flick, positive) Scar becomes king of Pride Rock
For the Birds short -- -the small birds mock the big one – he is EXOGENOUS – results in change for whole flock when they are shot into space - Controllability – they can’t control their public space
TV example. Relatively expensive when introduced usually only one TV per household; Families would sit and communicate about what to watch and what they thought about programs. With technical advances (resulting in 500 channels and lower costs) and economic improvements, TV watching has become a relatively solitary pursuit. Families do not talk about what they see; Therefore family communication patterns have been affected through the accumulation of technical and economic processes. Some sociologists have suggested that this has led to significant social change and to the weakening of the family structure.
