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Chapter 18:
Social Change
What to Expect in This Chapter...
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What is Social Change?
Sources of Social Change
Theories of Social Change
– Evolutionary Theory
– Conflict Theory
– Functionalist Theory
– Cyclical Theory
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Modernization and Global Social Change
Social Change in the United States
What is Social Change?
Social change refers to
“...any modification in the
social organization of a
society in any of its social
institutions or social roles”
Sources of Social Change
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Social change can originate from either within a
society, or from outside of a society
Internal sources of social change are those factors
that originate within a specific society that singly or in
combination with other factors produce alterations in
social institutions and social structure.
External sources of social change are events that
originate outside of a society to bring about change to
social institutions or structures
Internal Sources of Social Change
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Internal sources of social change typically occur
through technological innovation or ideological shifts
Technological Innovation
– Technology has changed society, particularly since the
Industrial Revolution
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Ideological Shifts
– Ideology refers to a set of beliefs and values that justify
pursuit of identified goals through a given set of means
– Ideologies may be either conservative, liberal or radical
– Liberal and radical ideologies are most likely to produce
social change
External Sources of Social
Change
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External sources of social change emanate from
outside of the society
Such change takes place through a process of
cultural diffusion—the movement of cultural
traits from one society to another
In some cases this diffusion is forced upon
weaker societies—a process known as forced
acculturation
Theories of Social Change
Evolutionary Theory
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Grounded in Darwin’s ideas of evolution and applied to social
change
Sociologist Herbert Spencer then coined the term “survival of
the fittest” to refer to the process by which one culture comes
to dominate others
Other social scientists, such as Durkheim and Tönnies,
suggested that societies pass through evolutionary stages, from
less to more complex
More recently, social scientists suggest that there are many
ways that societies develop and that a “general” evolutionary
trajectory cannot explain the development of societies around
the world
Conflict Theory
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Grounded in the ideas of Karl
Marx
– Claims that the engine for social
change is conflict between unequal
social classes
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More recent conflict theorists
suggest that conflict between
various groups, not necessarily
class-based, also fuels social
change
– Such groups include the National
Organization for Women, the
Christian Coalition and many others
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Functionalist Theory
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Functionalists see society as a homeostatic
system--consisting of interrelated parts
– The normal state of society is one of equilibrium
– Because society is an open system, it is usually in a
dynamic state, or a state of near equilibrium
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Society changes as it seeks to integrate conditions
which act upon it
– The changes, however, are piecemeal and very gradual
– The purpose of these changes is to bring society to a
place of equilibrium
Cyclical Theory
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Based on the observation that civilizations rise and fall
An examplar of cyclical theory is the work of Pitirim
Sorokin
– Sorokin identified 2 types of cultures
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Ideational cultures—emphasize spiritual values
Sensate cultures—emphasize sensual experience
– Suggested that societies move between these two extremes
of sensate and ideational culture
– Societies occasionally arrive at an intermediate point, or
idealistic point, which represents a harmonious mix of both
ideational and sensate cultural features
Modernization and Global
Social Change
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Modernization is “...a complex set of changes that
take place as a traditional society becomes an
industrial one”
The process of modernization usually takes place in
stages:
– Farmers produce a surplus to be sold at market, creating a
money economy
– Simple tools are replaced by industrial technology
– Work becomes specialized
Modernization in the Third World
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Unlike Western societies, where modernization
developed naturally, third-world nations have had
modernization forced on them by colonizing nations
As these societies are establishing political
independence, they are rejecting many aspects of
Western modernization
Western organizations are also recognizing that
Western models for modernization are not necessarily
appropriate for third-world countries
Click here to visit SIFAT—a Christian-based organization seeking to
develop appropriate technologies for third-world economies
Impact of Modernization on
Individual Life
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Modernization has had numerous positive
impacts on people’s lives
– In Western nations, life expectancy has increased
from 47.6 years in 1900 to about 76 years today
– Health has generally improved
– Leisure time has increased
– Standards of living have improved
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There have also been costs to modernization
– Obesity, anxiety, and pollution are all products of
modernization
– Modernization in developing worlds has resulted in
severe psychological dislocation
The McDonaldization of
Society
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Sociologist George Ritzer uses the fast food restaurant
as a model for what is taking place in modern society
today
– Like McDonalds, modern society is increasingly efficient and
predictable
– Moreover, similar to the model of a fast food restaurant,
technology controls people in modern society rather than
vice versa
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Ritzer suggests that there is a downside to
McDonaldization
– Such a society is dehumanizing
– There is little room for human creativity in such systems
Social Change in the United
States
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Technological change has dominated the landscape of American
society in the last half century
What are some technological innovations that have occurred
since you were born?
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One author has suggested that technological innovations have
ushered in the “Age of Insight”
– New technology provides more information, and helps us understand the
human body and the physical world in ways never before possible
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Sociologists sometimes use the term technological determinism
to refer to the impact that technology has on society and
culture
The Workforce of the Future
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Changing demographic composition of the United
States will powerfully affect the nature of the
workforce
– The population over age 85 has increased by 30% from
1990-1998
– Teens comprise an ever lower proportion of the population
– Minorities and women will comprise a larger percentage of
the workforce in the future
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Changing technologies will also affect the workforce
of the future
– Manufacturing is decreasing, while service sector and
information processing jobs are increasing
Projections for Fastest Growing
Occupations, 1998-2008
Percent Increase
0
20
40
60
80
Computer/Data Processing
67
Management/PR
45
Research/Testing
40,2
Job Training
120
117
Health Services
Day Care
100
32,4
29,3
Source: Statistical Abstract of the United States,
U.S. Census Bureau, 2000
140
Projections for Fastest Declining
Occupations, 1998-2008
Railroad
-19,9
Cotton Mills
-20,1
Forestry
-20,8
Coal Mining
-34,8
Apparel
-36
Petroleum Industry
-46,2
-50
-40
-30
-20
Percent Decrease
Source: Statistical Abstract of the United States,
U.S. Census Bureau, 2000
-10
0