1. Collective Behavior
Chapter 17, section 1

2. Introduction In general, social behavior is patterned and predictable.
Collective Behavior:
when social behavior is not patterned and predictable
people make up new norms as they go along in unclear situations
short lived, spontaneous, and emotional

3. Characteristics of Collectives
Limited Interaction: short or non-existent
Unclear Norms: no set rules
Limited Unity: seldom share a group identity

4. There are many different types of collectives.

5. Crowd Definition: a temporary gathering of people
Casual Crowd: least organized, most temporary
Example: lines to buy movie tickets
Conventional Crowd: more structured, gather for a common reason
Example: funeral, ball game
Expressive Crowd: no apparent goal or purpose; common behavior includes cheering, dancing, and/or shouting
Example: concert
Acting Crowd: violent; intense emotions which are usually hostile, destructive, and focused on one target
Examples follow

6. Mob The most violent form of an acting crowd United by a violent goal
Usually has a leader or leaders
Generally unstable and limited
Example: lynch mobs

7. More Acting Crowds
Riots: erupt into generalized destructive behavior; less unified and focused than mobs; participants lack power
Example: LA riots after the Rodney King beatings
Panics: triggered by fear
Example: Chicago Fire of 1903
Moral Panics: people become fearful, without reason, about behavior that appears to threaten society’s core values
Example: Gay Marriage concerns

8. Mass Hysteria: an unfounded anxiety shared by people scattered over a wide geographic area; involves irrational beliefs and behaviors spread by the population and fueled by the media; short lived
Example: swine flu
Fashions: enthusiastic attachments among large numbers of people for particular styles of appearance or behavior; subject to change
Example: grunge look

9. Fads: an unconventional object, action, or idea that a large number of people are attached to for a very short time
Example: mood rings; pet rocks
Rumors: an unverified piece of information that is spread rapidly from one person to another; changes from person to person
Example: news about a classmate
Urban Legends: stories that teach a lesson and seem realistic, but are untrue
Example: bring one in for homework!

10. Public Opinion: the collection of differing attitudes that members of a group of geographically scattered people have about a particular issue; often influenced by propaganda
Example: views on equality

11. Explaining Collective Behavior
Contagion Theory: crowds are so hypnotic, people give up their individuality
Emergent-Norm Theory: traditional norms don’t apply in this crowd, so people have to act quickly
Value-Added Theory: the pre-conditions for collective behavior build on one another—see next slide 

12. Pre-Conditions Structural Conduciveness Structural Strain
Growth and Spread of a Generalized Belief
Precipitating Factors
Mobilization for Action
Social Control