SOCIAL &

CULTURAL CHANGE

GUL-E-NAYAB

SOCIAL CHANGE• Social change refers to an alteration in the social

order of a society.

• Social change may include changes

in nature, social institutions, social behaviours,

or social relations

• Social change refers to any significant alteration

over time in behavior patterns and cultural values

and norms.

SOCIAL CHANGE• By “significant” alteration, sociologists mean

changes yielding profound social consequences.

Examples of significant social changes having

long‐term effects include the industrial revolution,

the abolition of slavery, and the feminist

movement.

• Social change is the transformation of culture and

social institutions over time.

DIFFERENT DEFINITIONS

• Kingsley Davis meant only such alterations

that affect the organisation, structure and

functions of society.

• John J. social change is “the

transformation of culture and social

institutions over time.”

MAIN CAUSES OF SOCIAL CHANGE

CAUSES • Social change happens everywhere, but the rate of

change varies from place to place social change is

sometimes intentional but often unplanned social

change may generate controversy; that some

changes matter more than others do.

• These are some of the major factors that highlight

the causes of social change:

i. A large part of change in society is caused by

change in culture. Culture is a system that

constantly loses and gains components.

Invention, discovery and diffusion are considered

to be the main sources of cultural change.

• Inventions produce new products, ideas, and

social patterns.

• It is a new combination or a new use of existing

knowledge.

• Inventions may be classified into material

(telephone, aero plane), and social inventions

(alphabet, language, government, etc.).

• Each invention is new in form, function and

meaning and has long-term possibilities of

impact.

• Discovery is finding something that has never

been found before, or finding something new in

something that already exists.

• A discovery adds something new to the culture

and becomes a factor in social change only when

it is put to use.

• Diffusion is a process of the spreading of ideas,

culture and objects to other societies.

• It operates both within societies and between

societies involving trading, migration, and mass

communication.

ii. New ideas and modification of old ideas in a new

context bring wide-scale changes in society.

iii. Demographic change is caused by an increase in

birth and decline in death and migration of

populations. Change occurs from the demographic

transition in society.

iv. Social change is also caused by tension and

conflict. Again social division based on class,

caste, gender, ethnicity, estate, etc. have also been

important sources of conflict in society.

v. Social movements are organized efforts of groups

of people to bring about deliberate change in the

values, norms, institutions, culture relationships

and traditions of the society. They also generate

new identities and a new perspective.

CAUSES OF SOCIAL CHANGE: SUM UP

1. Technological and Economic Changes: (Agriculture

advancement, industrialization)

2. Modernization: standardizing as towards modern tools

(Life Style, Technology)

3. Urbanization: Moving population from ruler areas to

urban (Cities) areas.

4. Bureaucratization: Extreme emphasize on rules and

regulation, impersonality.

CAUSES OF SOCIAL CHANGE: SUM UP

5. Conflict and Competition: War: due to religion, ethnic

tensions, competition for resources. Gender and Women’s

Movement: equal pay, property: Today; day care,

occupational segregation.

6. Political and Legal Power: Elected Official (Government) &

Unelected Officials (Corporative Force)

7. Ideology: Religious Belief, Political or Regional Conviction.

CAUSES OF SOCIAL CHANGE: SUM UP

8. Diffusion: Spreading the ones cultural to another culture.

9. Acculturation: the process in which a minority is

absorbed into the majority and entirely loses its

distinctiveness.

PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT

• Major changes in the physical environment are very

compelling when they happen.

• Climates change, soil erodes and lakes gradually

turn into swamps and finally plains.

• A culture is greatly affected by such changes

although sometimes they come about so slowly that

they are largely unnoticed.

PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT

• Human misuse can bring very rapid changes in

physical environment which in turn change the

social and cultural life of a people.

• Deforestation brings land erosion and reduces

rainfall.

• Environmental destruction has been at least a

contributing factor in the fall of most great

civilization.

PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT

• Many human groups throughout history have

changed their physical environment through

migration. In the primitive societies whose members

are very directly dependent upon their physical

environment migration to a different environment

brings major changes in the culture.

• Civilization makes it easy to transport a culture and

practice it in a new and different environment.

• A population change is itself a social change but

also becomes a casual factor in further social and

cultural changes.

• When a thinly settled frontier fills up with people

the hospitality pattern fades away, secondary group

relations multiply, institutional structures grow

more elaborate and many other changes follow.

POPULATION CHANGES

• A stable population may be able to resist change

but a rapidly growing population must migrate,

improve its productivity or starve.

POPULATION CHANGES

• Migration encourages further change for it brings a

group into a new environment subjects it to new

social contacts and confronts it with new problems.

• No major population change leaves the culture

unchanged.

POPULATION CHANGES

ATTITUDES AND VALUES

• To people in developed nations and societies

change is normal.

• socialized people anticipate and appreciate change.

• People who are preoccupied with past traditions

and rituals will change slowly and unwillingly.

ATTITUDES AND VALUES

• When a culture has been relatively static for a long

time the people are likely to assume that it should

remain so indefinitely.

• They are intensely and unconsciously ethnocentric;

they assume that their customs and techniques are

correct and everlasting.

• Rapidly changing societies are aware of the social

change.

ATTITUDES AND VALUES

• attitudes powerfully stimulate the proposal and

acceptance of changes by individuals within the

society.

• Attitudes and values affect both the amount and the

direction of social change.

TECHNOLOGICAL FACTORS

• The technological factors represent the conditions

created by man which have a profound influence on

his life.

• In the attempt to satisfy his wants, fulfill his needs

and to make his life more comfortable man creates

civilization.

• Technology is a byproduct of civilization .

TECHNOLOGICAL FACTORS

• When the scientific knowledge is applied to the

problems in life it becomes technology.

• Technology is a systematic knowledge which is put

into practice that is to use tools and run machines

to serve human purpose.

• Science and technology go together. In utilizing the

products of technology man brings social change.

TECHNOLOGICAL FACTORS

• According to Karl Marx even the formation of social

relations and mental conceptions and attitudes are

dependent upon technology. He has regarded

technology as a sole explanation of social change.

• W.F Ogburn says technology changes society by

changing our environment to which we in turn

adapt.

RESISTANCE TO CHANGE

• Misunderstanding about the need for change/when

the reason for the change is unclear — If staff do

not understand the need for change you can expect

resistance.

• Especially from those who strongly believe the

current way of doing things works well…and has

done for twenty years!

• Fear of the unknown — One of the most common

reasons for resistance is fear of the unknown.

RESISTANCE TO CHANGE

• People will only take active steps toward the

unknown if they genuinely believe – and perhaps

more importantly, feel – that the risks of standing

still are greater than those of moving forward in a

new direction

• Lack of competence — This is a fear people will

seldom admit. But sometimes, change in

organizations necessitates changes in skills, and

some people will feel that they won’t be able to

make the transition very well

• Connected to the old way — If you ask people in an

organization to do things in a new way, as rational

as that new way may seem to you, you will be

setting yourself up against hard wiring.

• Low trust — When people don’t believe that they,

or the company, can competently manage the

change there is likely to be resistance

• Temporary fad — When people belief that the

change initiative is a temporary fad

• Not being consulted — If people are allowed to be

part of the change there is less resistance. People

like to know what’s going on, especially if their

jobs may be affected .Informed employees tend to

have higher levels of job satisfaction than

uninformed employees

• Poor communication —When it comes to change

management there’s no such thing as too

much communication objections. Not

dealing proactively is one pitfall – but there are

many other common mistakes.

• Changes to routines — When we talk about

comfort zones we’re really referring to routines. We

love them. They make us secure. So there’s bound

to be resistance whenever change requires us to

do things differently

• Benefits and rewards — When the benefits and

rewards for making the change are not seen as

adequate for the trouble involved.

• Expecting resistance to change and planning for it

from the start of your change management

program will allow you to deal effectively for

change.

Thank You