1. Forces of Social Change

2.  Was there a social change that took place in your article?  What was the society like before the change took place?  What was the society like after the social change?  What factor(s) caused the change to take place?  Was it a positive or negative change for the majority of the population? – (significance)

3.  Geography - natural lay of the land has affected the way societies have developed  Things like bodies of water, mountains, inlets, flat lands all affect the way a society develops  Geography can also prevent social change  Natural disasters can also drastically change a society  Floods, earthquakes and volcanoes

4.  How close another cultural group is to a society can cause it to change  Societies that live in close proximity to others tend to change more rapidly than those who are remote  Exchanges between cultures are known as intercultural contact  In the past this occurred through wars, exploration and trade  Today this includes the exchange of ideas, trade, globalization and tourism

5.  Events that have occurred on a large scale affecting an entire nation or several nations  These events have a large and immediate impact on social change  Examples???  American Civil War –abolished slavery  WWII –forced women into the workforce and they never returned home  September 11/2001 –a change of thought regarding (inter)national threat and security

6.  Throughout history, technology has strongly affected the way societies are designed and how they keep changing  Agricultural advancements such as irrigation, the plow, and the cotton gin are responsible for surpluses of food, which lead to population growth and urbanization.  The computer is a revolutionary invention which is the major piece of technology in contemporary culture.  We will focus more in this unit on how technology impacts social change…

7.  Sociologist Max Weber claimed that one of the most important components of social change was a LEADER with CHARISMA (large vision, magnetic style, strong popular support and extraordinary character).  This leader places great demands on his or her followers, BUT also promises rewards for their support.  Examples???

8.  This leader may be good or bad, but for sociologists these critiques should be value free and focus on the leadership skills –  Were they an effective leader? Not...Were they a moral leader?  What qualities made/make these leaders charismatic to the population?

9.  Small group who control society’s wealth  These groups create significant social change  Social change is usually achieved by various modernizing elites and not a single leader  Examples???

10.  Occurs when a population is ready for change and most often is protesting for it  Visions for change have to match the mood of the public  if public doesn’t want to change, it is unlikely to happen  Examples???

11.  Research aimed to highlight social inequality  After research is complete, the researchers become advocates for the studied group and help fight for the social change

12.  Social continuity - means that there are barriers and structures within society which are built to resist change

13. Durkheim’s study of Religion:  Religion functions to stabilize society and bring together a sense of unity and identity between the members of the community  Religion allows societies to be stabilized. This occurs in the reenacting of rituals, which creates intense emotions and bonding between the participants.

15.  Canadian legislation has extended the legal definition of family from the original concept (based on heterosexual marriage and biological links to children) to include:  Step parents  Unwed fathers  Co-habitation  Unmarried and married homosexual partners  Why is this significant?  These groups now have the same rights and responsibilities that heterosexual couples (original definition) have – i.e. health benefits, child custody, assets etc.

16.  Charter of the Rights of the Family:  B: family is based on marriage – between man and woman – freely contracted – publically expressed – indissoluble (can not be dissolved) - open to the transmission of life  E: a community of love – teach cultural, ethical, social, spiritual, and religious values essential for development of its members and society

17.  Religion is a traditional institution that does not often change  In some cases religion is the main basis for the law and culture in a society  In some cases, religion does not change to meet the needs of a society – example is the legal definition of family in Canada (changed) vs. the religious definition (stayed the same)

18.  Impediment/barrier to social change  People unwilling to accept social change  Push to stick with old cultural practices and avoid modern changes

19.  Case Study: The San of Southern Africa  The San were hunter-gatherers in central Southern Africa  Nomadic people who travelled extensively over a wide area  They had not developed a system of cultivating fruits & vegetables  In mid-1960s, countries of Botswana & Namibia were created with fenced borders that ran through area over which the San roamed  Result: Progress for some countries BUT the livelihood of San were destroyed & they had to give up traditional lifestyle & many went to work in gold mines of South Africa  The San Bushmen of South Saharan Africa  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTagNNqSfhI&feature=rela ted http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NTagNNqSfhI&feature=rela ted

20.  The price of change might be too high for a society to be willing to support  Canadian Social Example – introduction of government health care in the 1960s – social values vs. tax payers $$$$, 1 year maternity/paternity leave  Increasing cost of post-secondary education  Can cause some to feel excluded from the social change because they cannot afford it