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SOCIAL CHANGE THEORIES
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1)
FUNCTIONALISM (relates
to Linear development models of social change, see Lenski)
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Theory
of order and stability or Equilibrium theory: concept of
stability is a defining characteristic of structure, defines activities
that are necessary for the survival of the system, i.e. society has
functional requisites or imperatives where different functional
requisites produce differentiated structures that specialize in
accomplishing the requisites. |
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Parson’s
Evolutionary Theory - types of change: |
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System
maintenance – most common: restoring
a previous pattern of equilibrium |
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Structural
differentiation- very common: increasing
differentiation of subsystem units into patterns of functional
specialization and interdependence |
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Adaptave
upgrading: new
mechanisms of integration, coordination and control are developed to
incorporate the integrative problems by having structural
differentiation |
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Structural
change – least common change:
when key features of the system, e.g. basic cultural values,
goals, distribution |
Key
evolutionary universals that were evident in transition from pre-modern
to modern societies (describes modernism but does not explain it):
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social
stratification |
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bureaucratic
organization |
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cultural
legitimation of existing structural arrangements |
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money
economy and markets |
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generalized
or universalistic social norms |
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democratic
associations |
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Neo-functionalism |
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Tension-management
system (society is not an equilibrium system):
if there are strains or tensions, organization will initiate
compensatory, adjustive or counterbalancing actions to counter
disruptions change will be confined to internal features, if these
strains are so severe or prolonged that such actions cannot compensate,
organizational features will be altered or destroyed and entire
organization changes |
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Criticisms |
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deals
mainly with gradual evolutionary change, less able to deal with
revolutionary, fundamental, rapid transformations, or emergence of
new values |
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sources
of strains ambiguous unless exogenous in origin |
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see
change as good - views modernism as a benevolent trend.
Societal growth produces differentiation, and problems with
increased complexity stimulate adaptive change with new coordination
and control mechanism. Increased
bureaucratic specialization and complex division of labour in mass
societies provide rationality, efficiency, high levels of mass
consumption, decline in cultural parochialism and forms of
intolerance and superstition |
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Mass
society theory - Functionalist critique of modernity |
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along
with modernity have erosion of traditional life and culture |
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replacement
of local community with bureaucratic depersonalization and anonymity |
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weaker
and impersonal ties of functional interdependency |
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argued
that mass developed societies are in a process of demassification |
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2)
CONFLICT THEORIES
(relates to Dialectical models of social change) |
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Strains
are inherent in social structures.
Source of strains/contradictions is the inherent scarcity of
certain goods and values. Thus
inequality is source of conflict. |
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Marxism
(see other course notes - if you are a sociology major/minor, you
should know this already) |
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- differs from Marxism in the following ways: |
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Sources
of conflict - traditional Marxism too narrow an understanding of
structural basis of conflict, doesn’t always derive from struggles
in control of the means of production;
other conflicts based on politics, religion, ethnic or
ideological differences, e.g. class, status and power |
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Role
of culture: symbolic
realm of ideas, values and ideologies are semi-autonomous and not
merely derivative of material base (Critical theorists analyze
cultural and cultural ideologies in modern society as manifested in
popular literature and mass media); culture is viewed as symbolic formations and ideologies that
become tools in social struggles between various groups and classes,
i.e. ideas and values produce solidarity and unity (as
functionalists agree) but also social control associated with
interests of particular groups;
same as Marxism, i.e. dominant culture stems from dominant
groups in society; production
of culture is one way that existing system reproduces itself;
when there is widespread disillusion, disbelief or cynicism
about dominant symbols in society, a legitimacy crisis - change
occurs |
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Inevitability
of revolutionary change: neo-Marxists
less deterministic about outcomes, not simply total system
transformation or revolution, nor inevitable; one result of
contradictions could be reaffirming of dominance, or ongoing
stalemate, or gradual reform and piecemeal changes |
Conflict
can be:
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unregulated: e.g. terrorism, sabotage, disorder |
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regulated
by social norms: e.g.
economic boycotts, parliamentary debate, marketplace competitions |
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intense
conflict: high degree
of mobilization, commitment, emotional involvement |
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violent
conflict: random,
unorganized |
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pluralized
conflict: many
conflicts but not necessarily related and thus not much change,
gradual |
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superimposed
conflict: dyadic conflicts, large cleavage between us and them,
dramatic/intense change, not necessarily |
Conflict
can result in:
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stability
as ongoing stalemate OR |
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defeat
of established or insurgent groups OR |
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total
or partial system change |
Any
settlement of conflict is only temporary;
each restructured system carries within itself the seeds of its
own transformation – thus a dialectical theory.
Unlike Marxism which sees a utopian society with no conflict in
the end, neo-Marxists are antiutopian.
Conflict is engine of change - has both destructive and creative
consequences, destroy old orders, create new ones. |
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Ralf
Dahrendorf |
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Saw combination of
functionalism and conflict theory, human societies are stable and long
lasting yet they also experience serious conflict.
Social
control in general is broadest basis of conflict in society.
All social systems have association of roles and statuses which
embody power relationships, some cluster of roles have power to extract
conformity; power relationships tend to be institutionalized
as authority – normative rights to dominate;
i.e. some have authority to give orders, others obliged to obey. |
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Criticisms |
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What
about change not rooted in conflict?
E.g. cultural or technological change |
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Sees
only dichotomous authority relations rather than continuous
gradations of relationships |
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What
of non-institutionalized power relationships – deals with
authority, only one form of power; what of violence, or
age/gender/race and associated conflicts not based on economics |
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3)
INTERPRETIVE THEORIES |
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Derived
from Weber whose focus was not solely on overt behaviour and events but
also on how these are interpreted, defined and shaped by cultural
meanings that people give to them, i.e. interpretive understanding of
social action – verstehen. All types of
interpretive theories focus on way actors define their social situations
and the effect of these definitions on ensuing action and interaction;
human society is an ongoing process rather than an entity or
structure, as humans interact they negotiate order, structure and
cultural meanings. Reality is an ongoing social
symbolic construction put together by human interaction.
For
Functionalists and Conflict theorists, the starting point of
sociological analysis of change is structure.
BUT…
For
Interpretivists, change itself (interaction, process, negotiation) is
the starting point, and structure is a by-product and temporary.
Social change is the constant creation, negotiation and
re-creation of social order. Social
change can be understood by looking at change in meanings and
definitions. Groups,
societies, organizations become real only insofar that the actors
believe they are to be real, thus a negotiated consensus about what is
real emerges; i.e. society is literally a social construction, an
outcome of historical process of symbolic interaction and negotiation.
In complex societies, there is only a partial consensus on what
constitutes objective social reality, instead there is a virtual
tapestry of contending realities.
When
external factors change, this does not automatically produce social
change. Rather when people
redefine situations regarding those factors and thus act upon revised
meanings, i.e. alter social behaviour, then there is social change.
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Symbolic
interactionism : see
Mead, Blumer |
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Social
phenomenology: see Schutz, Berger and Luckman |
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Criticisms |
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Not
much said about structural sources of redefinitions, |
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Argue
humans are less constrained by external factors, thus these theories
are less deterministic |
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Doesn’t
say whether actors seek to reconstruct reality by engaging in
cooperative joint action or conflict with others so consistent with
either functionalism or conflict theory. |
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4) Multiple
perspectives and change: Reconciling
agency and structure |
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Structures
have potential to operate, agents (individuals) have potential to
act; combination of agents working within, creating and being
limited by structures is referred to as human agency. Praxis is
the interface between operating structures and purposely acting agents,
i.e. the combination of actions of people and operation of structures in
the actual outcomes of social interaction or in praxis. |
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Buckley’s
morphogenesis: unique
capacity of social systems to elaborate or change their form,
structure or state, emphasizing the active, constructive side of
social functioning |
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Archers’
double morphogenesis: both
structure and agency are cojoint products of interaction, agency is
shaped by and reshapes structure where structure is reshaped in the
process. |
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Etzioni’s
active society: society
is a macroscopic and permanent social movement engaged in intensive
and perpetual self-transformation |
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Touraine: making of society and history is carried out by collective
action, through the agency of social movements |
| Gidden’s
Structuration theory: replaced
static concept of structure with dynamic notion of structuration -
more later (see my thesis information). |
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