sociology, tenth edition collective behavior & social movements

Sociology, Tenth Edition

Collective Behavior & Social Movements


Studying Collective Behavior

• Social movements– Organized activities that encourage

or discourage social change

• Collective behavior– Activities involving a large number

of people, often spontaneous, and typically in violation of established social norms


Studying Collective Behavior

• Collective behavior is wide-ranging– So many variables to take into account

• Collective behavior is complex– The possible questions and answers are

so numerous

• Much of collective behavior is transitory– Things arise and dissipate quickly


Collectivity

• A large number of people whose minimal interaction occurs in the absence of well-defined and conventional norms

• Two types– Localized – people in physical proximity to

one another– Dispersed or mass behavior – people who

influence one another even though SEPERATED by great distances


How Collectives Differ From Groups

• Collectives are based on limited social interaction– Interaction in mobs is limited and temporary

• Collectives have no clear social boundaries– Little sense of unity compared to social

groups whose members often share a common identity

• Collectives generate weak and unconventional norms– Mobs often destroy and act spontaneously


CrowdsCrowdsA Temporary Gathering of People Who Share a Common Focus of

Attention and Whose Members Influence One Another

HERBERT BLUMMER IDENTIFIED 4 TYPES, WE ADD A 5TH• A CASUAL CROWD: PEOPLE ON A BEACH

– LOOSE COLLECTION OF PEOPLE WHO INTERACT VERY LITTLE

• A CONVENTIONAL CROWD: A COLLEGE CLASSROOM– RESULTS FROM DELIBERATE PLANNING NORMALLY CONFORMING TO

CULTURAL NORMS

• AN EXPRESSIVE CROWD: A CHURCH SERVICE– AROUND AN EVENT WITH EMOTIONAL APPEAL

• AN ACTING CROWD: PEOPLE FLEEING FROM A FIRE– COLLECTIVITY FUELED BY AN INTENSE, SINGLE-MINDED PURPOSE

• A PROTEST CROWD: A COLLEGE STUDENT SIT-IN– PEOPLE ENGAGE IN A VARIETY OF ACTIONS, INCLUDING STRIKES AND

BOYCOTTS


When Acting Crowds Turn Violent

• Mob– A highly emotional crowd that pursues

a violent or DISTRUCTIVE goal• Lynch mob

• Riots– A social REUPTION that is highly

emotional, violent & undirected • Watts, south central, after a LAKERS

championship


Theories of Crowd Behavior

• Gustave le Bon’s contagion theory– Crowds exert hypnotic influence over

their members, people surrender to a “collective mind” its members rid themselves of inhibitions and act out and the crowd assumes a life of its own

• Critical evaluation– Crowd actions result from the intentions

and decisions of specific individuals– Not necessarily irrational


Theories of Crowd Behavior

• Convergence theory– Motivations are brought to the crowd by the individual Motivations are brought to the crowd by the individual

members, not vice versamembers, not vice versa– Crowds amount to a convergence of like-minded people– The crowd doesn’t generate the action, but rather the

members themselves stimulate the action of the crowd• Example: neighborhood groups concerned about

crime and want to do something about it

• Critical evaluation– Some people do things in a crowd that they would not

have the courage to do alone– Crows can intensify a sentiment simply by creating a

critical mass of like-minded people


Theories of Crowd Behavior• Turner & Killian’s emergent-norm theory

– People in crowds have mixed interests– In less stable crowds (expressive, acting, and protest),

norms may be vague or changing one does something and others jump on the “bandwagon” people in crowds make their own rules as they go along

• Critical evaluation– A symbolic-interaction approach that POINST out that

POEOLE in a crowd take on different roles


Mass Behavior• Collective behavior among people

dispersed over a wide geographical area

• Types include– Rumor and gossip– Public opinion– Propaganda– Panic and mass hysteria– Fads and fashions


Rumor and Gossip

• Rumor – unsubstantiated information people spread informally, often by word of mouth– Rumor thrives in a climate of ambiguity– Rumor is unstable– Rumor is difficult to stop

• Gossip – is rumor about the personal affairs of others– Gossip concerns a small circle of people– Rumors spread widely, but gossip is more localized– Can be used to praise or scorn someone– Can be used to raise one’s standing or keep others in their

place


Public Opinion & Propaganda

• Public opinion – widespread attitudes about controversial issues– On any given issue from 2–10% of Americans

report they hold no opinion• Is this due to ignorance or indifference?

– Not everyone’s opinion carries the same weight

• Experts in a field

• Propaganda– information presented with the intention of shaping public opinion– Thin line between information and propaganda– Not all propaganda is false


Panic & Mass Hysteria

• Panic– A form of localized collective behavior by which

people react to a perceived threat or other stimulus with irrational, frantic, and often self-destructive behavior

• Mass hysteria– A form of dispersed collective behavior by

which people respond to a real or imagined event often with irrational and even frantic fear and often self-destructive behavior


Fashions and Fads• Fashions

– A social pattern favored for a time by a large number of people

• Fashion characterizes all forms of art• Traditional style gives way to changing fashion• Can trickle down through less expensive copies• THORSTEIN VEBLEN’S conspicuous consumption – people

buying expensive products simply to show-off their wealth

• Fads– An unconventional social pattern that people embrace

briefly but enthusiastically– Sometimes called crazes


Types of Social Movements

Social Movements – an organized activity that encourages or discourages social change

• Alternative– Least threatening, limited change for a limited number of

members– Example: planned parenthood

• Redemptive– Selective focus, radical change– Example: some religious organizations

• Reformative– Limited social change that targets all members of society– Example: equal rights amendment movement

• Revolutionary– The most severe, striving for basic transformation of

society– Example: ultra-conservative political movements


Figure 23-2 Four Types of Social Movements


Theories of Social Movements

• Deprivation Theory– Social movements arise among people who feel

deprived– Result of experiencing relative deprivation – a

perceived disadvantage arising from some specific comparison

– Critical evaluation• Why do social movements arise among some groups

and not others• Theory suffers from circular reasoning• Focuses exclusively on the cause telling us little

about movements themselves


Figure 23-3 Relative

Deprivation and Social Movements



Wm. Kornhauser’s Mass-Society Theory– Social movements attract socially isolated

people who feel personally insignificant.– Movements are personal as ell as political,

giving people with week social ties a sense of purpose and belonging

– Critical evaluation• Gives no clear standard fro measuring the extent to

which we live in a mass society• Belittles the social justice issue suggesting it is

flawed people not flawed society that are responsible• Research is mixed on support of theory



• Neil Smelser’s Structural-Strain Theory• Six factors encouraging social movement

1. Structural conducivenessArise out of perceptions of problems

2. Structural strainExperiencing relative deprivation

3. Growth and spread of an explanationMaking clear reasons and solutions for suffering


Theories of Social Movements• Neil Smelser’s Structural-Strain Theory• Six factors encouraging social movement

(cont.)4. Precipitating factors

Specific events give rise to collection action

5. Mobilization for actionAction stage; Protest and rallies

6. Lack of social controlQuick, harsh response, or giving the “green light” for change?

– Critical evaluation• Same circular arguments as Kornhauser’s

theory• Overlooks important role of resources, mass

media and international alliances



• Resource-Mobilization Theory– No social movement is likely to succeed or

even get off the ground without substantial resources

• Money• Human labor• Offices and communication facilities• Access to mass media

– Critical evaluation• Powerless can promote change if they are organized

an have committed members• Overstates the extent to which powerful people are

willing to challenge the status quo



• Cultural Theory– The people in any particular situation are

likely to mobilize to form a social movement only to the extent that they develop shared understandings of the world that legitimate and motivate collective action

– Critical evaluation• Does not address how and when powerful cultural

symbols turn people from supporting the system toward protest



• New Social Movements Theory– Emphasizes the distinctive futures of recent

social movements in postindustrial societies• Most of today’s movements are international• Tend to focus on cultural change and improving social

and physical surroundings• Draws support from middle and upper classes

– Critical Evaluation• Tends to exaggerate differences between past and

present social movements


Stages of Social Movements• Stage one: emergence

– Perception that something is wrong

• Stage two: coalescence– Defining itself and “going public”

• Stage three: bureaucratization– Organizing rationally to get job done

• Stage four: decline– Is the movement in need of regrouping or is it

simply time for its demise?• Reasons:

– Signals success has been reached– Signals organizational problems (leadership, etc.)– Leadership sells out to other interests– Demise may result from state-sponsored repression


Figure 23-4 Stages in the Lives of Social Movements


Social Movements of the 21st Century

• Many of the nation’s serious social woes remain unchanged.– Poor public schools, crime, size of government, race

relations, cost of political campaigns, health care costs, free speech, etc.

• Reasons why social movements will continue to be part of the American scene.– Protest should increase as more historically marginal

groups gain a greater political voice.– Technology means people can stay current with events as

they happen.– Because many problems are global in scope, only

international cooperation can solve them.

sociology, tenth edition collective behavior & social movements

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