APS Perspective on Social Change

Sociological Change

* Change occurs in groups and whole societies
* Change is an inevitable process

Sociological Concepts of Change

* Decay due to materialism and declining spiritualism
* Cycles of growth and decay (not just decay)
* Progress –building on the successes and experiences of other societies

Social change is not universal or uniform

* Different societies develop differently \n (different values and different rates of change)
* Each society has its own *norms*

Social change is an observable difference in patterns of behaviour:

* The direction of change: *positive or negative?  Who says so?*
* Rate of change: *fast or slow?  Moderate or radical?*
* Sources of change: *exogenous or endogenous?  What is it?*

Psychological Change

* People’s attitudes and behaviours are strongly connected. If attitude changes, so does the behaviour.

How is behaviour modified?

* *Friends, family, information, experience, and social pressure… all influence attitudes, but different methods are needed for different people.*

Why do we change our minds?

* Cognitive consistency –keeping attitudes consistent
* Cognitive dissonance –conflicts in knowledge need to be resolved, changing attitudes and behaviour

Psychological Change is driven by:

* Thoughts/ideas/beliefs \n (seeking balance and resolving conflict)
* Attitudes
* Behaviours

Anthropological Change

* Culture is a constantly changing organism
* Change is usually slow and steady

The Anthropological change varies by country

* The change varies by country
* Geography
* Economy
* Connectedness with the rest of the world

Anthropological Change is driven by:

* Invention
* Discovery
* Diffusion

Culture is learned and internalized by:

* The physical environment
* Level of technology
* Social organization
* Systems of symbols