AC4.2 Explain how social change affect policy development Flashcards
social values definition
rules shared by most people in a society
e.g. most people feel we should respect the elderly
norms defintion
social expectations that guide behaviour
e.g. unwritten rules = shouldn’t queue jump, written rules = shouldn’t drive when drunk
mores definiton
society’s most important moral rules
e.g. murder, incest
society’s changing views regarding death penalty
in the 18th century society approved of the death penalty as it protected the upper class.
in 1950 Timothy Evans was hanged and in 1953 Derek Bentley was hanged. these two cases were regarded as miscarriages of justice, leading to a change in public opinion about the death penalty and a change to the law. capital punishment for murder was temporarily abolished in UK in 1965 and fully abolished in 1969.
the norms in society changed in society as society learnt about miscarriages of justice and saw it as immoral.
society’s changing views regarding domestic abuse
at beginning of 20th century women had few rights. in 1918 women obtained the right to vote.
legal attitudes also changed over time for example R v R (1991) is a decision where the House of Lords determined that it is a crime for a husband to rape his wife.
there has been an introduction of numerous anti-discrimination laws which has led to the position and status of women in society improving
following the introduction of Family act law 1996 + Protection from Harassment Act 1997 there was a change in policing attitudes
Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (Clare’s Law) is a scheme that allows people to find out from the police if their partner has a history of domestic violence
society’s changing views regarding smoking
it was the social norm to smoke cigarettes during 1930’s and it was seen as acceptable. film stars were seen smoking in movies and it was seen to be acceptable to smoke indoors, in cars with children. smoking was even glamourised and encouraged by doctors.
from mid 1950’s research was published confirming link between tobacco products and lung cancer. public had growing concerns about dangers of smoking, this led to disappearance of doctors from cigarette ads
1964, Surgeon General found link between lung cancer and chronic bronchitis and cigarette smoking
Tobacco advertising and promotion Act 2002 banned the advertising and promotion of tobacco products
Health act 2006 prohibits smoking in enclosed work and public places
campaign groups like ASH encourage people to stop smoking
society’s attitudes towards smoking have changed and smoking is seen as less glamourous and less acceptable
society’s changing views of homosexuality
in 16th century homosexual acts were punishable by death
this penalty was removed in 19th century but law still prohibited sexual acts between men.
views surrounding homosexuality continued changing and it was decriminalised in 1967
however it took many decades before homosexuals received same rights as heterosexuals.
in 2000 age of consent lowered to 16 by sexual offences amendment act 2000, this brought homosexuality to be on equal terms with heterosexual sex
in 2004 civil partnerships permitted as a result of Civil Partnership Act 2004
in 2014 the law allowed the first same sex marriage under the Marriage Act 2013
homosexuality is now socially acceptable in UK, and the fight for equality represents one of most dramatic changes in public opinion
society’s changing views on women’s rights
At the beginning of the 20th Century, women had very few legal and political rights. The stereotype of a married woman would be one that stayed at home to look after the children, while the husband went out to work.
However, as the Suffragette movement fought for the right to vote, women rebelled against marriage, seeking education and equality.
in 1928 support for equality from both women and men meant that women received the right to vote
during World War II with the advent of war, women had to fill many roles traditionally occupied by men.
in 1960s the Women’s Liberation movement helped many changes come about through their policies and radical thinking. Policies concerning equality continued to be introduced by numerous governments and touched upon education, discrimination and employment.
the feminist movement and policies coming out made peoples attitude towards women’s rights change
the Equal Pay Act 1970 made it illegal to pay women lower rates than men for the same work.
the Sex Discrimination Act 1975 made it illegal to discriminate against women in work, education and training.
three reasons for changing values and attitudes
individualism
equal rights
secularisation
individualism
the belief that individuals have the right to choose how to live their lives, so long they do no harm to others
equal rights
another major change in British culture has been the growth of the idea of equal rights. can be seen in growth of women’s rights, move towards equal rights for LGBT people, all of which have ben enshrined in equality laws
secularisation
the declining influence of religion on people’s lives. as a result, religious condemnation of homosexuality carries much less weight
