Collective Behaviour & Social Change

Question 1

What is collective behaviour? /2

Answer 1

any social interaction in which a group of people engage in behaviour that is not in their normal routine

can easily influence each other

Question 2

What is social change?

Answer 2

how cultures and social institutions change over time

Question 3

What is a crowd?

Answer 3

large group of people who gather for a temporary purpose

Question 4

What is a mob?

Answer 4

group characterized by high levels of emotion that engage in some type of focused action that can be violent or disruptive

Question 5

What is a riot?

Answer 5

emotional and violent disturbances of the peace by a crowd that lack a central focus

Question 6

What is fashion?

Answer 6

object, style, or behaviour which become popular for a period of time

Question 7

What is a fad?

Answer 7

temporary fashion or action the public embraces

Question 8

What are rumours?

Answer 8

stories or statements that lack information or certainty

Question 9

What are urban legends?

Answer 9

rumours that are presented as true stories

act as cautionary tales

Question 10

What is a casual crowd?

Answer 10

a group of people who are in the same place at the same time, but without a specific or shared purpose

ex. shopping mall (to an extent)

Question 11

What is a conventional crowd?

Answer 11

people who come together for a specific, scheduled event

ex. hockey game, concert

Question 12

What is an expressive crowd?

Answer 12

people expressing emotions together

ex. wedding

Question 13

What is an acting crowd?

Answer 13

focused on a specific goal or action

ex. BLM protest

Question 14

What is a flash mob? /2

Answer 14

group of people who gather together in a spontaneous activity that lasts a limited amount of time before returning to their regular routines

executed more efficiently thanks to technology

ex. for proposals

Question 15

What is the Contagion Theory? /8

Answer 15

By French sociologist Gustav LeBon

people are more suggestive when they are part of a crowd

do things as a collectivity that they would never do alone

moods, attitudes, and behaviour are communicated rapidly and are accepted by others (contagious)

emotions such as fear and hate are contagious

people experience a decline in personal responsibility

more likely to engage in anti-social behaviour

feeling anonymous and invulnerable

Question 16

What is the Convergence Theory? /4

Answer 16

suggests that some people are more likely to join crowds

the types of behaviour they exhibit attract a certain personality type

people with similar emotional or social attributes are more likely to participate in collective behaviour

more likely to join a mob or riot

ex. the storming of the capital for Donald Trump

Question 17

What is the Emergent Norms Theory? /5

Answer 17

crowds establish new forms of behaviour

develop their own definition of a situation

a leader often emerges and others follow their lead

can start a riot and become violent

old norms no longer apply

ex. the reaction of overcrowding at the Travis Scott concert 2021

Question 18

What is William Ogburn’s view on social change? /4

Answer 18

determined by technology

invention

discovery

diffusion

Question 19

What is an invention? /3

Answer 19

creating something completely new

made with one’s own ideas and development

usually a device

ex. record player

Question 20

What is a discovery? /2

Answer 20

recognizing for the first time something that already exists

nobody has found or used before

ex. feedback in music

Question 21

What is a diffusion?

Answer 21

spread of ideas and tools to other cultures

ex. reggae music

Question 22

What is a social movement? /2

Answer 22

enduring form of collective action

an organized group that acts consciously to promote or resist change o the social system

Question 23

What is Alternative Social Movements?

Answer 23

create a limited change in certain people’s thoughts, practices, and beliefs regarding a specific issue

ex. Mothers Against Drunk Driving

Question 24

What is Redemptive Social Movements? /2

Answer 24

focus on specific individuals

seek radical change

ex. Sunday Church

Question 25

What is Reformative Social Movements? /4

Answer 25

seek to change a society’s thoughts and actions

only in a limited way

progressive : make change

regressive: stop change

Question 26

What is Revolutionary Social Movements?

Answer 26

a.k.a transformative social movements

seek to change the thoughts and actions of all society in a radical fashion

Question 27

What is emergence? /3

Answer 27

first stage of social movements

people become aware of a problem

begin to notice that others feel the same way

Question 28

What is coalescence? /2

Answer 28

second stage of social movements

resources are mobilized and the movement grows

Question 29

What is bureaucratization? /3

Answer 29

third stage of social movement

becomes more organized

take on many of the aspects of a more conventional organization

Question 30

What is a decline? /3

Answer 30

final stage of social movements

a.k.a institutionalization

movements become mainstream or else their disappear

Question 31

What is perversity?

Answer 31

claims that the proposed solution or new idea would actually make things worse

Question 32

What is jeopardy?

Answer 32

claims that attempting to solve the problem will only draw attention away from other, more important issues

Question 33

What is the ‘who is changed’ and ‘amount of change’ of alternative?

Answer 33

individuals

limited

Question 34

What is the ‘who is changed’ and ‘amount of change’ of reformative?

Answer 34

society

limited

Question 35

What is the ‘who is changed’ and ‘amount of change’ of redemptive?

Answer 35

individuals

radical

Question 36

What is the ‘who is changed’ and ‘amount of change’ of revolutionary?

Answer 36

society

radical