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Social change

Social change is the alteration of the social order of a society which may include changes in social institutions, social behaviours or social relations. Sustained at a larger scale, it may lead to social transformation or societal transformation.[1]

"Social transition" redirects here. For social adjustments as part of an individual's gender transition, see Gender transition § Social, psychological, and aesthetic aspects.

Definition[edit]

Social change may not refer to the notion of social progress or sociocultural evolution, the philosophical idea that society moves forward by evolutionary means. It may refer to a paradigmatic change in the socio-economic structure, for instance the transition from feudalism to capitalism, or hypothetical future transition to some form of post-capitalism.


Social development is the people that develop social and emotional skills across the lifespan, with particular attention to childhood and adolescence. Healthy social development allows us to form positive relationships with family, friends, teachers, and other people in our lives.[2]


Accordingly, it may also refer to social revolution, such as the Socialist revolution presented in Marxism, or to other social movements, such as women's suffrage or the civil rights movement. Social change may be driven through cultural, religious, economic, environmental, scientific or technological forces.

Christian: In Christianity & Judaism social change is seen in terms of God's blessings on faithfulness or curses on disobedience. See chapter 28.

Deuteronomy

Hegelian: The classic dialectic model of change is based on the interaction of opposing forces. Starting from a point of momentary stasis, Thesis countered by Antithesis first yields conflict, then it subsequently results in a new Synthesis.

Hegelian

Marxist: presents a dialectical and materialist concept of history, seeing humankind's history as a fundamental "struggle between social classes".[5]

Marxism

Kuhnian: The , Thomas Kuhn argues in The Structure of Scientific Revolutions with respect to the Copernican Revolution that people are likely to continue utilizing an apparently unworkable paradigm until a better paradigm is commonly accepted. A Kuhnian approach to the study of societies is provided by the critical juncture approach to social order and change.

philosopher of science

Heraclitan: The Greek philosopher used the metaphor of a river to speak of change thus: "On those stepping into rivers staying the same other and other waters flow" (DK22B12). What Heraclitus seems to be suggesting here, later interpretations notwithstanding, is that, in order for the river to remain the river, change must constantly be taking place.[6] Thus one may think of the Heraclitan model as parallel to that of a living organism, which, in order to remain alive, must constantly change. A contemporary application of this approach is shown in the social-change theory SEED-SCALE which builds off of the complexity theory subfield of emergence.

Heraclitus

Daoist: The Chinese philosophical work , I.8 and II.78 uses the metaphor of water as the ideal agent of change. Water, although soft and yielding, will eventually wear away stone. Change, in this model, is to be natural, harmonious and steady, albeit imperceptible.

Dao De Jing

Change comes from two sources. One source is unique factors such as climate, weather, or the presence of specific groups of people. Another source is systematic factors. For example, successful development generally has the same requirements, such as a stable and flexible government, enough free and available resources, and a diverse social organization of society. On the whole, social change is usually a combination of systematic factors along with some random or unique factors.[3]


Many theories attempt to explain social change. One view suggests that a theory of change should include elements such as structural aspects of change (like population shifts), processes and mechanisms of social change, and directions of change.[4]

Fabian change – gradual and reformist incremental amelioration after the manner of the Fabian Society

[8]

radical change – improvements root and branch in the style of political radicalism

[9]

change[10] – abrupt, radical and drastic change, with implications of violence and of starting afresh (perhaps most popular as a political bogeyman)

revolutionary

transformational change – a New-age version of radical change, and thus difficult to define

[11]

continuous change, open-ended change – change (allegedly) for the sake of change

[12]

top-down change – reliance on [13]

leadership

bottom-up change – reliance on the huddled masses

[14]

socio-tectonic change[16] – postulated deep-seated fundamental social shifts

[15]

Social changes can vary according to speed and scope and impetus.[7] Some research on the various types of social change focuses on social organizations such as corporations.


Different manifestations of change include:

(1973). Tradition, Change, and Modernity. Krieger Publishing.

Eisenstadt, S. N.

(2006). Sociology. Cambridge: Polity Press.

Giddens, Anthony

Haralambos, Michael and Holborn, Martin (2008). Sociology: Themes and Perspectives. London: . ISBN 0007245955

HarperCollins

Harper, C. L. (1993). Exploring Social Change. New Jersey: Engelwood Cliffs.

Oesterdiekhoff, Georg W. (2014). . Journal of Social Sciences. 10 (4): 185–195. doi:10.3844/jssp.2014.185.195.

"The Role of Developmental Psychology to Understanding History, Culture and Social Change"

T. & Castro-Sotomayor, J. (2020). "Routledge Handbook of Ecocultural Identity." London, UK: Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351068840.

Milstein

The Social System (1951). New York: The Free Press

Talcott Parsons

(1944). The Great Transformation. New York: Farrar & Rinehart.

Polanyi, Karl

(1988). "Misreading, then Rereading, Nineteenth-Century Social Change." Pp. 332–58 in Social Structures: A Network Approach, eds. Barry Wellman and S. D. Berkowitz. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Tilly, Charles

Tilly, Charles (2004). Social Movements, 1768-2004. Boulder, CO: Paradigm Publishers.  1-59451-043-1.

ISBN

Vago, Steven (1999). Social Change, 4th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.  0-13-679416-5.

ISBN

– reports about global social, political, economic, demographic and technological change

Understanding The World Today

from Georgia State University

Social Change Collection