1 of 6

And in the end…

Architects of Change: Reconstructing Society

2 of 6

What are some of the sources of change in our society?

  • Single dramatic event
  • Cultural and technological innovations
  • Shifting population size
  • Environmental pressures
  • Diffusion from other cultures
  • Media
  • Others?

©Pine Forge Press, an imprint of Sage Publications, 2008.

3 of 6

Major source of change: Technological advancement

  • Technological change may be one of most accelerated
  • Computers have become indispensable
  • Convenience and access to information
  • Negatives?
  • Loss of privacy
  • Blurring of traditional lines between work and home

©Pine Forge Press, an imprint of Sage Publications, 2008.

4 of 6

Major source of change:�Social Movements

  • social movement Continuous, large-scale, organized collective action motivated by the desire to enact, stop, or reverse change in some area of society
  • Types of movements
    • Reform Movement – define?
    • Countermovement – define?
    • Revolutionary Movement- define?

©Pine Forge Press, an imprint of Sage Publications, 2008.

5 of 6

Rising Expectations

  • When conditions at their worst, many solely focused on survival
  • People more likely to seek social change when living conditions have improved somewhat
  • Chance for change seems possible

©Pine Forge Press, an imprint of Sage Publications, 2008.

6 of 6

Sociological Imagination

  • We re-create society not only through acts of defiance and organized social movements but also through our daily interactions
  • society is simultaneously a human creation and a phenomenon that exists independently of us, influencing and controlling our private experiences
  • Through sociology, we can be “aware of the chains that restrict our ‘movements,’ but we also have the tools to break those chains”

©Pine Forge Press, an imprint of Sage Publications, 2008.