Types of social movement – Behavioral sciences explore the cognitive processes within organisms and the behavioral interactions between organisms in the natural world. It involves the systematic analysis and investigation of human and animal behavior through the study of the past, controlled and naturalistic observation of the present and disciplined scientific experimentation and modeling.
It attempts to accomplish legitimate, objective conclusions through rigorous formulations and observation. Generally, behavior science deals primarily with human action and often seeks to generalize about human behavior as it relates to society.
Types of social movement
Sociologists classified social movements into different types on the basis of their objectives. Wallace and Wallace, Horton and Hunt, M.S. Rao, and others have mentioned of three main types of movements:
Reform Movements: Reform movements are satisfied with the existing social order but believe that certain reforms are necessary in some specific areas. The reformers endeavor to change elements of the system as it currently stands.
Example
- The Civil Rights Movement,
- Women’s Liberation Movement,
- Save the Environment Movement,
- Brahmo Samaj Movement, etc.
Revolutionary Movements:
The revolutionary movements deny that the system will even work. These movements are deeply dissatisfied with the social order and work for radical change. Revolutionary movements generally prefer not to use violence although some of them do resort to violence.
Example:
- The Protestant Reformation Movement, the Socialist Move- ment,
- The Communist Revolution of Russia and also of China
Reactionary or Revivalist Movement:
Some movements are known as reactionary or regressive movements. These aim at “putting the clock back”. Their members view certain social changes with suspicion and distaste and try to reverse the current trends.
They highlight the importance and greatness of traditional values, ideologies and institutional arrangements.
Example:
- The Catholic Counter Reformation,
- The Brahmo Samaj, Arya Samaj, The Sarvodaya Movement, “Khadi and Gramodyog Movement of Gandhiji, and the like.
In addition to the above, mentioned three main types of movements, we can add two other types of movements as suggested by Horton and Hunt.
Resistance Movements:
These movements are formed to resist a change that is already taking place in society. The many social and cultural changes of recent decades have been profoundly disturbing to many of the Indians who feel that our national virtues, traditional values, and cultural greatness, are being eroded by Secularism, minority appeasement, sexual permissiveness, moral degradation, political corruption and sell-out of national interests for the partial political interests, and so on.
Examples:
- Anti-Abortion Movement
- Anti-Hindi Movement,
- Anti-Reservation Movement
Utopian Movements:
These are attempts to take the society or at least a section of it towards a state of perfection. “These are loosely structured collectivities that envision a radically changed and blissful state, ei- ther on a large scale at some time in the future or on a smaller scale in the present.
Examples:
- The “Hare Krishna Movement of the seventies, the movement towards the establishment of “Rama Rajya”- as envisioned by the B.J.P. and the “Sangh Parivar” (The community of the supporters of the R.S.S. School of Thought)
Causes of Social Movement
1. Cultural Drifts:
- The society is undergoing constant changes. The values and behavior are changing in all civilized societies. In the course of cultural drift most of the people develop new ideas. To get these ideas operative in society they organize a movement.
- The development of a democratic society, the emancipation of women, the spread of mass education, the removal of untouchability, equality of opportunity for both the sexes, growth of secularism are the examples of cultural drift.
2. Social Disorganization:
- Social disorganization brings confusion and uncertainty because the old traditions no longer form a dependable guide to behavior. The individuals become rootless. They
feel isolated from the society. A feeling develops that the community leaders are indifferent to their needs. - The individuals feel insecure, confused and frustrated. Confusion and frustration produce social movements.
3. Social Injustice:
- When a group of people feel that injustice has been done to it they become frustrated and alienated. Such feeling of injustice provides fertile soil for social movements
4. The people who are more susceptible to social movements are those who are:
- Mobile and have little chance to become integrated into the life of the community,
- Not fully accepted and integrated into the group and are termed marginal,
- Isolated from the community,
- Threatened by economic insecurity and loss of social status,
- Free from family responsibilities or are estranged from their families,
- Mal-adjusted.
Characteristics of Social movement
M.S. A. Rao, one of the prominent Indian sociologists, has made a mention of the nature of social movements in the book “Social Movements in India”, edited by him. According to him, social movement includes two characteristics about which there is considerable agreement among the sociologists. They are as follows:
Collective Action: Social movement undoubtedly involves collective action. However, this collective action, takes the form of a movement only when it is sustained for a long time. This collective action need not be formally organized. It could be an informal attempt also. But it should be able to create an interest and awakening in relatively large number of people.
Oriented towards Social Change: A Social movement is generally oriented towards bringing about social change. This change could either be partial or total. Though the movement is aimed at bringing about a change in the values, norms, ideologies of the existing system, efforts are also made by some other forces to resist the changes and to maintain the status quo.
The counter attempts are normally defensive and restorative rather than innovative and initiating change. They are normally the organized- efforts of an already established order to maintain itself.
Formation of Social Movement/Stages of Social Movement
1. The Preliminary Stage: This stage can also be called,” the unrest stage”. In this stage we found some confusion or discontentment among people. Hence they are restless. In fact all social movement begins with some feeling of discontent with the existing social order.
2. The Popular Stage: In the popular stage the movement begins to rally around a figure or a leader who promise to alleviate suffering of the people. This leader may be a charismatic leader with some extraordinary qualities who is capable of giving a leadership to the movement.
3. The Formalization Stage (The stage of Formal Organization): This is the stage in which programmers are developed, alliance is forged, and organizations and tactics are developed. In this stage, a party. Organization, or group of individuals may put forward an alternative vision, world-view or ideology, to understand, analysis and solve a prevailing crisis.mnoνης
4. The Stage of Institutionalization of the movement: If the movement becomes successful, then it destroys itself in its last stage of development when it becomes an institution. At this point, it is no longer collective behavior, because it is organized. Follows accepted norms of society, and replaced its emotional base with the assumption that change will take time.
5. The Dissolution Stage: Last stage of Social movement namely, the dissolution stage. When the movement becomes an ending organization or fade away, possibility to be revived sometimes later, it can be said to have entered this last stage of dissolution.
