Exam 16: Collective Behavior, Social Movements, and Social Change

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Although collective behavior is short-lived and relatively unorganized, social movements are longer lasting, are more organized, and have specific goals or purposes. A social movement is an organized group that acts consciously to promote or resist change through collective action. Because social movements have not become institutionalized and are outside the political mainstream, they offer "outsiders" an opportunity to have their voices heard. Social movements are more likely to develop in industrialized societies than in preindustrial societies, where acceptance of traditional beliefs and practices makes such movements unlikely. Diversity and a lack of consensus (hallmarks of industrialized nations) contribute to demands for social change, and people who participate in social movements typically lack power and other resources to bring about change without engaging in collective action. Social movements are most likely to appear when people come to see their personal troubles as public issues that cannot be solved without a collective response. Social movements are most commonly directed at the government, but other social institutions may also be the targets of social movements.

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Simmel suggested a "trickle down" theory of fashion in which lower classes emulate the styles of the upper classes, although these are increasingly vulgarized as they reach the lower status levels. Veblen argued that fashion exists primarily as a means of institutionalizing conspicuous consumption by members of the upper classes. Bourdieu also saw fashion as a means of differentiating between members of different social classes. He suggested that matters of taste were a form of cultural capital, access to which separates social classes. In contrast, Blumer argued that fashion is the product of collective mood, tastes, and choices. Members of the lower classes do not emulate the upper classes. Blumer stated that taste is the product of social interaction, of experience. Today, many fashions originate in the lower classes and are imitated by the elite, lending support to Blumer's perspective.