Environmental Forces Promoting Social Change
Denise Rehana
SOC490: Social Science Capstone
Instructor: Lynn Lunceford
November 29, 2010
Today the ideal illustration was brought to my attention, which left me contemplating upon this inquiry. What environmental forces promote social change? The example unexpectedly came from one of my After School Program femal students, who placed a note in the question box. I recognized after evaluation of the note that most students of her age are beging to speculate about social and gender questions. Her question read “Why boys are more open to acknowledge one another and girls are occasionally shy?” This notifies as much about her own traditions as it does the society in which she lives. Make a note of the fact of the importance that is placed on the noticeable diversity that she sees between the social and verbal skills, along with status between the sexes. She noted the friendly conversational characteristics of males, but denied them more in girls; and she touched on psycho-social and individuality features between the sexes, which consist of local multi-culture economic and political features of attending a Jr. High with an exceptional combination of cultural factors and strong established gender roles. The environmental concerns above can be distinguished as an essential part of our society today; as it has been for thousands of years, particularly in view of the fact that governed societies are most common all over the world. My objective is not to make an effort to respond to her inquiry above, but to look at the strong points that were concealed within it from the viewpoint of social change. The outside social forces I will be concentrating on in this dissertation are gender, economics, politics, and culture. Together, these four environmental areas work together to promote social change at the international/specific and the international/general levels.
Social change is defined as “Significant alteration over time in behavior patterns and culture, including norms and values” (Schaefer, 2009, p. 425).
It is also explained as socical process whereby the valuus, attitudes, or institutions of society, such as education, family, religion, and industry become modified. It incorporates both the natural process and action programs initiated by members of the community.
If social changes of such micro/specific things as individual outlook or family morals, can be changed by outside forces, then so can macro/gerneral institutions such as businesses or corporations, organized religions, the education systems we learn from K-12, as well as post secondary, and technical or other schools, or even government. Who places these changes into action? Is one stage of change more essential than the other? Can a single person transform the world? Can the social forces in the world transform a human being? The situation on these questions would be one of cultural relativism, where the alterations would need to be observed through the lens of the cultural society in which it takes place. For example, American culture is comparable as well as different than the European culture; alike because they equally draw form Western standards, teachings, and practices, as well as comparable democratic governmental roles, but different because the self-governing states within Europe vary in culture, traditions, language, and local values than does the United States.
According to Cousins(2008), European life needs to stay diversely respected and the European Union (EU) should participate in peacfully supporting that uniqueness at all levels as society evloves and changes, keeping in mind that nationalism and religious diversions are two major factors to overcome (para. 1,3).
Cousins concludes that the SEPE (social, economic and political evolution) of Europe cannot be completely compared to natural evolution, saying (regarding mankind) that “natural evolution has needed neither his knowledge nor his consent. Unfortunately, his peaceful, social, economic and political evolution requires both” (2008, para. 5).
This articulates of cultural and institutional education and personal principles being in harmony with the apparition. Furthermore, a “Peaceful Unification of Europe” is dependent upon overcoming a host of issues (2008, para. 27).
With 27 member States, a lot of of which have, in result, been enticed to join; an astonishing 785 MEPs, traveling like a circus between tow almost useless Parliaments in two different countries; 23 official languages; mountains of surplus food in a semi-starving world; secret budgets that for 13 years the auditors have refused to sign; just one democratic vote every five years; widespread fraud; and a Constitution that is being forced upon us, it appears to be a circumstance that will take years to correct if the EU does not fall apart before then, have we not learned nothing from Yugoslavia?
This macro or generalized illustration at the multi-state level, in regard to education and a host of cultural and political factors is the personification of how social change can transpire in a multi-faceted way, and can apparently take a colossal quantity of resurces and time. Also, civil and human rights are positioned in the core of some of these international disputes. The concern of equality saturates together the macro and micro levels, and gender would fall into this bizarre gap where tradition frequently fights with newer paradigms that come along to surpass it. Although such factors as the physical environment, population, technology, and social inequality serve as sources of change, it is the collective effort of individuals organized in social movements that ultimately leads to change (Schaefer, 2009, p. 401).
Yuval-Davis (2009) explains it is gendered globalization that factors into social change (para.1).
It affects the roles that women take part in, or see themselves a part of, and alters how men react to their place in society as it is constructed as well. As globalization factors emerge society finds itself lending a hand to equality of women and the division of labor gap lessening is size, even though women are still not paid as highly as men for the same jobs. However, this same pohenomenon has caused a social change at the political level, with “the politics of belonging” being differentiated with the emotional sense of “belonging” (Yuval-Davis, 2009).
Yuval-Davis states that this difference is “crucial for any critical political discourse of nationalism, racism and other contemporary politics of belonging. It is also crucial for any analysis of gender relations and the constructions of femininity and masculinity” (para. 8).
It is clear that the boundaries constructed by such attachment or belonging for women on a personal, macro, or specific way also affects the greater or macro group level since it constructs “differences between ‘us’ and ‘them’ … regarding … gender relations in general and womanhood in particular” (para. 10).
This could also be observed as gender relations in particular, and womanhood in general.
Social change is not just connected to how we erect our realities concerning gender. Many more individual level concerns are appropriate. The specific areas in peoples’ lives are affected, and Behrens (2009) gives details of this characteristic as socially pertinent behavioral habits regarding the change management needed to work it out and bring it to fruition (para. 1).
To this end, Behrens investigates traditional advances as well as the boundaries related with it, especially when it comes to the lack of new social changes taking hold and becoming habitual, such as a New Year’s resolution that is at first emotionally charged and are willed into action, but then tend to fall by the wayside, with old habits continuing again (2009, para. 6).
The concluding examination is that with the right features in place that consider both the consious and unconsious neuroscientific factors in place, along with sufficient recurrence, new behaviors shape the social changes at the personal level. The state can also create incentives and environmental parameters that help foster such new habits as well (Behrens, 2009).
With methods such as these, and all levels working in the direction of social change from the inside out, and outside in, we perceive undoubtedly the environmental factors without a doubt overlap. This addition of cultural factors, along with political and social, not forgetting gendered submissions, and economic encouragement or influences definitely amount to extensive change over time. The growth of the many religions, and creation and conversation of people from one principle or devotion structure to another is a ideal illustration.
Rynkiewich (2008) exposed this matter regarding the cultural transformation of religion, saying “Graham Ward writes … ‘What makes a belief believable? And suggested that ‘cultural negotiation is always syncretistic’ … This dynamic syncretism is the place where there is hope … and cultural transformation … A theology spoken in language beyond the habitus cannot be understood, much less believed” (para. 3, 5).
The design here is that cultural overlaps beliefs and perceptions must be valid in order for change to take place and not be discarded totally. One additional factor adds to the difficulty of resolving social change both the definition and the objective aspects of a particular problem change over time. Sometimes the change may be so rapid that an issue baely has time to be a problem (Robert H. Lauer, 2008, p. 13).
This characteristic is present in macro level institutional settings, as stated previously when discussing gender, economics, politics, and culture and how they overlap. Collectively, these four environmental regions work together to support social change at the micro/specific and macro/general levels. The environmental forces of social change, its appears then, is rather extensive and persons nor societies stand completely by itself; even my students question on gender and common concerns crosses over into a multi-faceted province.
References
Behrens, G. &. (2009).
Change Management of Socially Revelant Habits.
Management Revue , pp. 20(2), 176-189 .
Cousins, W. (2008).
SEPE Social, Economic & Political Evolution.
Revista de Stiinte Politice , (20) 7-11.
Robert H. Lauer, J. C. (2008).
Social Problems and the Quality of Life.
New York: The McGraw-Hill Copmpanies, Inc.
Rynkiewich, M. &. (2008).
Cultural Transformation and Religious Practice.
Scottish Journal of Theology , 61(4) 503-505.
Schaefer, R. T. (2009).
Sociology A Brief Introduction 8th Edition.
New York: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Yuval-Davis, N. (2009).
Gendered Globalization and Social Change.
NIAS Nytt , (1) 26-29.