COLLECTIVE BEHAVIOR AND SOCIAL MOVEMENTS

1. 17 COLLECTIVE BEHAVIOR AND SOCIAL MOVEMENTS • Sec. 1: Collective Behavior • Characteristics • Types • Explanations • Sec 2: Social Movements • Types • Life Cycle • Explanations

2. Sec. 1: Collective BehaviorSocial Groups vs Collectivities

3. Types of Collective Behavior • Crowds • Crowds: Temporary groupings of people in close proximity who share a common focus or interest. • Crowds are not totally lacking in structure. • New social norms may develop, at least temporarily. Ex: condoning looting.

4. Types of Collective Behavior • Types of Crowds

5. Types of Collective Behavior • Mobs & Riots • Most violent forms of an active crowd • Mobs – have a goal to their violence and/or destruction. (Ex: Lynching, Gaston) • Riots - an eruption of general destruction towards no apparent target (Ex: LA Riots) • A venting of frustration from a perceived lack of power • End when too exhausted or order restored

6. Types of Collective Behavior • Panics • Panic: A fearful arousal or collective flight based on a generalized belief that may or may not be accurate. • Fueled by faulty communication • Break down of “mutual cooperation.” • Absence of norms • Moral Panic: the dilemma of immoral behavior being beneficial (profitable) • Bailouts, CEO bonuses,

7. Types of Collective Behavior • Mass Hysteria • Unfounded fear shared by people over a very large area or population • Usually fueled by the media • Usually short-lived • Examples • Post-911 treatment of American Muslims • Y2K • Salem Witch Trials

8. Types of Collective Behavior • Fads and Fashions • Fads: Temporary patterns of behavior involving large numbers of people. • Hula Hoops, Pokemon, Cabbage Patch Kids • Fashions: popular attachments to particular styles of appearance or behavior. • Continually changing (status, progress, etc) • Usually seen in industrial societies due to the emphasis on “social mobility” & “status”

9. Types of Collective Behavior • Rumors & Urban Legends • Rumor: Unverified piece of information that spreads rapidly from one person to another. “Did you guys hear …?” • Urban Legends: stories that teach a lesson and seem realistic but are untrue. • “Guy with hatchet in back of a car” story • “Flashing high-beams” story

10. Types of Collective Behavior • Public and Public Opinion • The Public: A dispersed group of people, not necessarily in contact with one another, who share interest in an issue. • Public Opinion: Collection of attitudes on matters of public policy that are communicated to decision makers. • Collecting public opinion – polls, etc • Influencing public opinion – propaganda, etc

11. Explaining Collective Behavior • Contagion Theory • Contagion theory: people of a crowd give up their individuality to the strong pull of the group • Factors that give power to crowds • Anonymity of individuals in a crowd • Rapid & contagious spreading of emotions • Logical thought turns to “suggestibility” by the group or manipulative leaders • “I just got caught up in it.”

12. Explaining Collective Behavior • Emergent-Norm Theory • Emergent-Norm Theory: During an episode of collective behavior, a definition of what behavior is appropriate or not emerges from the crowd. • Examples: • The Wave • Slow Clap

13. Explaining Collective Behavior • Value-Added Theory • Identifies & explains the prerequisites or evolution of collective behavior. • Structural Conduciveness • Structural Strain • Generalized Belief • Precipitating Factors • Mobilization for action • Exercise of Social Control

14. Explaining Collective Behavior • Value-Added Theory – 1992 LA Riots

15. Sec. 2 : Social Movements • Social Movement:Long-term conscious collective effort to promote or prevent change • Characteristics of Social Movements: • Long-lasting • Possess a highly structured organization with recognized leadership • Deliberately attempt to institute or block societal change

16. Social Movements • Types of Social Movements: • Reactionary – attempts to revert back to “the old way of doing things,” many times through violence • Conservative – protect social values • Revisionary – improve or revise a part of society • Revolutionary – complete & radical change of the existing social structure

17. Social Movements • Life Cycle of Social Movements: • Agitation – a problem exists & (usually) a small # of people take a stand & gain support/recognition from others who join in • Legitimation – “average” people join in & accept the leaders & mission; laws passed • Bureaucratization – (Ch 4) • Institutionalization – resist further changes that may threaten power of those in charge • Ex: Unions, Civil Rights, & Feminist Movements

18. Explaining Social Movements Relative Deprivation Theory • The conscious feeling of a negative discrepancy between legitimate expectations and present actualities. • In addition to relative deprivation, the following elements must be present before discontent will be channeled into a social movement: • people must feel they have a right to their goals • they must perceive that they cannot attain their goals through conventional means

19. Explaining Social Movements Resource Mobilization Theory • Resource mobilization refers to the ways in which a social movement utilizes resources such as money, political influence, access to the media, and workers. • To sustain a social movement, there must be an organizational base and continuity of leadership.

20. Communications Technology and Collective Behavior • Many of the examples used to illustrate collective behavior reflect the impact of communication technology. • Sociology is only beginning to consider the impact of the latest technology on various forms of collective behavior. • New communication technology can create enclaves of similarly minded people