1. CHAPTER 17 Collective Behavior and Social Movements
Sociology
3/31/2017
CHAPTER 17 Collective Behavior and Social Movements
Section 1: Collective Behavior
Section 2: Social Movements
Chapter 17

2. Objectives: Section 1: Collective Behavior
Contrast the various types of collectivities and describe the explanations for collective behavior that have been proposed.
Identify the preconditions necessary for collective behavior to occur and explain how they build on one another.

3. Types of Collectivities
Section 1: Collective Behavior
Types of Collectivities
Crowds – temporary gathering of people who are in close enough proximity to interact
Mobs and Riots – a mob is an emotionally charge collectivity whose members are united by a specific destructive or violent goal; a riot is a collection of people who erupt into generalized destructive behavior, the result of which is social disorder.

4. Types of Collectivities
Section 1: Collective Behavior
Types of Collectivities
(continued)
Panics – a spontaneous and uncoordinated group action to escape some perceived threat
Mass Hysteria – an unfounded anxiety shared by people who can be scattered over a wide geographic area

5. Types of Collectivities
Section 1: Collective Behavior
Types of Collectivities
(continued)
Fashion and Fads – fashion refers to enthusiastic attachments among large numbers of people for particular styles of appearance or behavior; a fad is an unconventional object, action, or idea that a large number of people are attached to for a very short period of time

6. Types of Collectivities
Section 1: Collective Behavior
Types of Collectivities
(continued)
Rumors and Urban Legends – a rumor is an unverified piece of information that is spread rapidly from one person to another; an urban legend is a story that teaches a lesson and seems realistic but is untrue
Public Opinion – refers to the collection of differing attitudes that members of a public have about a particular issue

7. Explanations for Collective Behavior
Section 1: Collective Behavior
Explanations for Collective Behavior
Contagion Theory – the hypnotic power of a crowd encourages people to give up their individuality to the stronger pull of the group
Emergent-Norm Theory – people in a crowd are often faced with a situation in which traditional norms of behavior do not apply
Value-Added Theory – explains crowd behavior as a process that moves from step to step

8. Preconditions of Collective Behavior
Section 1: Collective Behavior
Preconditions of Collective Behavior
Structural Conduciveness – refers to the surrounding social structure that makes it possible for a particular type of collective behavior to occur
Structural Strain – refers to social conditions that put strain on people and thus encourage them to seek some collective means of relief

9. Preconditions of Collective Behavior
Section 1: Collective Behavior
Preconditions of Collective Behavior
(continued)
Growth and Spread of Generalized Belief –people identify the problem, form opinions about it, and share ways of dealing with it
Precipitating Factors – refer to triggering mechanisms that set off the behavior
Social Control – a mechanism used to control or minimize a situation

10. Objectives: Section 2: Social Movements
Describe the types of social movements that exist and explain how they differ.
Identify the stages present in the life cycle of social movements and describe ways in which the existence of social movements can be explained.

11. Types of Social Movements
Section 2: Social Movements
Types of Social Movements
Reactionary – try to prevent a type of social change and return society to a past way of being; often use fear and violence; example: Ku Klux Klan
Conservative – try to protect prevailing values from what are seen as threats to those values; examples: the religious right

12. Types of Social Movements
Section 2: Social Movements
Types of Social Movements
(continued)
Revisionary – try to improve some part of society through social change; usually use legal methods and focus on a single issue; example: women’s suffrage movement

13. Types of Social Movements
Section 2: Social Movements
Types of Social Movements
(continued)
Revolutionary – seek a total radical change or existing social structure, overthrow existing government and replace it with their own version; often involve violent or illegal methods; example: the American Revolution

14. Life Cycle of Social Movements
Section 2: Social Movements
Life Cycle of Social Movements
Agitation – initial stirrings of a movement
Legitimation – movement viewed as more respectable
Bureaucratization – structure of movement more formal
Institutionalization – an established part of society

15. Explaining Social Movements
Section 2: Social Movements
Explaining Social Movements
Relative Deprivation Theory – people join social movements because they feel deprived relative to other people or groups with whom they identify
Resource-Mobilization Theory – not even the most ill-treated group with the most just cause will be able to bring about change without resources