HSB4U
Chapter 2
Intro to Social Change
First Homework
• Read pages 36-40.
• Take notes on Anthropological Questions
about Social Change
– Pages 41-42.
You and Cultural Change
• Interview the NEW person next to you.
Name one or two things they have
experienced that came from elsewhere.
• Was it something they brought back with
them that contributed to cultural change?
• Did it contribute to cultural change through
invention, discovery, and/or diffusion?
Ask an older friend or relative…
• What was the most important social
change that took place during their
lifetime?
– Connect the answers to Sources of Cultural
Change
• Invention
• Discovery
• Diffusion
Anthropological Questions About
Social Change
• What are the major differences between
developed and developing countries?
Invention, Discovery, Diffusion
• How did this aspect of culture come to us
here in Canada?
• A = Invention, B = Discovery, C = Diffusion
• System of writing
• Popularity of Thai or Vietnamese food
• Latest IPhone
Four Parts of Culture
Physical
environment
Level of
technology
Social
organization
System of
symbols
How the physical place we live
influences our culture – e.g.,
winter clothes in Canada
How much there is – e.g,
infrastructure may be less
developed in a lower income
country
Kinship, division of labour
Peace sign: Signs, shirts,
jewelry, bumper stickers
Homework
• Take notes on pages 43-45.
• Take notes on pages 45-47.
Psychological Questions About
Social Change
• “In psychology, social change refers to the
transformation of a person’s attitudes,
beliefs, and behaviours and the effect of
these transformations on the whole group
or society (De Coeur et al., 2012, p. 14).”
[see note below]
In APA format, an embedded citation such as the author-date one above
cannot stand alone. At the end of the report or essay, there has to be a
Reference list in which the full citation of each source is given in
alphabetical order. See last slide of this PPT.
Marijuana Study
• http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/marijuanause-by-teens-linked-with-problems-inyoung-adulthood-1.2761059
Psychological Questions About Social
Change: Cognitive Dissonance
• Designated driver drinks only one drink.
• Procrastinators tell themselves they’ll do
it in an hour or tomorrow.
• Inactive people tell themselves they’re
healthy enough and can start working out
tomorrow.
• Skippers tell themselves that “we’re not
doing anything in class.”
• Lazy students tell themselves they’ll start
putting in the effort in grade 12.
Festinger and Carlsmith (p.44)
• How does the conclusion of their
experiment relate to cognitive dissonance?
– Make sure your answer includes these words:
•
•
•
•
•
Cognitive dissonance
Attitude
Behaviour
Reward
Incentive
Note: when attitude or behaviour changes this is
evidence of social change for psychologists
Sociological Questions About
Social Change
Direction of
change __
A from exogenous or
endogenous
Rate of
change __
B how much regulation
it will require to
implement
C positive or negative,
for whom
Sources of
change __
Controllability D slow, fast, continuous
of change __
Four
Aspects
of Social
Change
Environmental Scenarios
• In order to cut down on traffic and pollution
in a city, the following solutions have been
developed. Imagine you are a sociologist
hired by the city government. Your job is to
analyze the likelihood of
acceptance/success based on the four
aspects of social change.
1. The city government will significantly reduce
the property taxes for each household in which
no occupants own a car.
2. The city government will establish a tax for
driving in the city at certain times of day
(congestion charge).
https://www.tfl.gov.uk/modes/driving/congestion-charge
3. The city government will give access to the
carpool lane with only one driver for hybrid or
electric cars. http://www.go511.com/traffic/carpool_lanes.aspx
4. The city government will provide low-cost
bicycles in areas throughout the city.
http://www.bikesharetoronto.com/
5. The city government will designate days when
people can and cannot drive based on their
license plate number.
Homework
• Take notes on pages 50 and 52.
• Give an example of a longitudinal study
from page 51.
Anthropological Theories of Social
Change
• Cultural interaction as a source of social
change
Interaction = contact with other cultures
Adaptation = making changes according to the
environment
• Unfortunately, contact between cultures is
NOT always positive.
– Examples?
San Case Study
Aspects of San culture
before borders/fences
•Communal property
•H-G
•Traditional lifestyle:
language, religion, jobs,
food, skills
•Already adapted by
trading, working on
cattle farms
Adaptation after
borders/fences
•Moved to South Africa
•Worked in gold mines
•Property ownership
•Permanent settlement
•Living under apartheid
laws
On YouTube, see The Journey of Man. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c246fZ-
San
• Is this case study an example of diffusion?
• Listen to the reading from The Wayfinders.
– What stance/viewpoint does an anthropologist
take when studying a different culture?
CBC Radio Ideas with Paul Kennedy. (2009, Nov. 2). 2009 CBC Massey lectures: the wayfinders. Why
ancient wisdom matters in the modern world. Retrieved Sept. 17, 2012 from
http://www.cbc.ca/ideas/episodes/massey-lectures/2009/11/02/massey-lectures-2009-thewayfinders-why-ancient-wisdom-matters-in-the-modern-world/
Adaptation Occurs Through…
• Diffusion
• Acculturation
– Incorporation
– Directed change
– Cultural evolution
Meet the ancestors. DNA study pinpoints Namibia as home to the world’s most
ancient race. (2009, May 1). Mail Online. Retrieved Sept. 17, 2012
from http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1176140/Meetancestors-DNA-study-pinpoints-Namibia-home-worlds-ancientrace.html
National Geographic: San People http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/places/regions-places/africatc/southafrica_sanpeople/
2.47
Homework
• Take notes on pages 53-55.
• Read the article in the handout package
entitled “Indian Residential Schools.”
Match the key concepts at the bottom with
the numbered passages.
Psychological Theories of Social
Change: Behaviour Modification
• Name common student misbehaviours in
class
• Name teacher reactions to them
• Name common childhood misbehaviours
at home
• Name parent reactions to them
Skinner’s Operant Conditioning
• Learning can be programmed by whatever
consequence follows a behaviour
– We repeat behaviours that are rewarded
– We avoid behaviours that are punished
• E.g., Skinner box – how did it use operant
conditioning?
• E.g., pigeon experiment on page 54 – how does it
use operant conditioning?
Science Photo Library. (N.d.). Skinner box research. Retrieved Sept. 17, 2012 from
http://www.sciencephoto.com/media/95709/enlarge
Behaviour Modification Works on
the Principles of…
• Negative reinforcement = if you do
something society disapproves of, society
will punish you or remove a privilege
• Positive reinforcement = rewards for good
behaviour
– Seen as more effective than negative
Residential Schools
• Claims against the government fall into three categories:
– Sexual and physical abuse
– Loss of language and culture
• “At the Shingwauk residential school in Sault St. Marie in 1875,
children were given a number of buttons at the start of each week.
Every time they were caught using a native language, they forfeited
a button. At the end of the week, the child with the most buttons
received a prize – a bag of nuts. Many schools punished children for
speaking an aboriginal language. Punishments included: writing 500
lines, adhesive on the mouth, withholding meals, needles through
the tongue, or a strap across the hand or backside.”
– Inter-generational family difficulties
• Parent visits were rare
• Siblings segregated by sex
• Letters home were in English – unreadable by parents
Indian Residential Schools Resolution Canada. (N.d.). Retrieved Aug. 6, 2005 from http://www.irsr-rqpi.gc.ca/english
Residential Schools
SOCIAL CHANGE THROUGH (identify the social
science discipline):
Change in the 1)
organization/structure of
• Diffusion:
society, and in the 2) beliefs
• Enculturation:
and 3) practices of the people
in it.
• Directed change:
• Acculturation:
• Assimilation:
• Behaviour modification / Operant conditioning:
– Negative and positive reinforcement
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
McLeod, S. (2012). Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. Simply Psychology. Retrieved Sept. 20, 2012 from
http://www.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html
Behaviour Modification Articles
Exercise (skip Sept. 2014)
• In groups, read your article about a reallife example of behaviour modification. In
your presentation:
– Summarize how the program uses BM
– Is BM BS?
• Is it a successful and effective real-life strategy for
changing behaviour?
Homework
• Take notes on first half of sociological
theories (use the new handout – uses
pages 59-64). .
Sociological Theories of Social
Change
• Tension and Adaptation – when so much
change occurs in society (tension, such as the
Great Depression) social institutions need to
adapt by doing new things
– Before the 1930s when people were struggling they’d
either have to cope on their own or turn to private
charities or religious supports.
• With so many people suffering in the Great Depression, the
government (an institution) adapted by taking on the role of
helping people
• What happened after 911 that showed tension
and adaptation?
Sociological Theories of Social
Change
• Blue book case studies:
– Page 22
– Page 101
– Can you make any connections between
them and the theories of change or key
concepts from chapter 2?
• Accumulation
– Our knowledge accumulates (grows) over
time
– New generations thus develop new ways of
doing things
– E.g., television was new in the 1950s for your
parents (or grandparents)
– What would be an example of accumulation in
our day and age?
• Diffusion of innovations
– New things are spread by people who adopt
the changes early on and speak out in favour
of them
• E.g., celebrity wears a new fashion trend
• What would be an example of a diffusion
of innovations other than the one above?
• Cultural pluralism
– Pluralism = when minorities are allowed to
maintain their traditions
• Opposite of assimilation
• In a diverse society like Canada there are so many
groups, they need to discuss with each other
before making any decisions
• Slows change
• What is the relationship between pluralism
and assimilation?
• Technology
• Social network – leading to lots of social
changes
• Did you know that Facebook, now in its
tenth year, went from having 17 million
users in 2007 to 500 million in 2011?
• Did you know that the trigger event for the
eruption of the protests in Egypt in 2011
related to Facebook? (next slide please)
Wael Ghonim
• In June 2010, Khaled Said was beaten to death after
exposing police corruption in Egypt. Wael Ghonim, an
Egyptian Google marketing executive, established a
Facebook page in July called “We are Khaled Said.” By
January it had 350 000 members. The day of revolt in
Egypt drew 15 000 protestors to Tahrir Square in Cairo
while 20 000 people protested in Alexandria. Eventually
hundreds of thousands of protestors filled the streets.
Ghonim was arrested on January 27. The government
shut down the internet in Egypt. On February 11,
President Mubarak resigned. (See blue textbook page
22)
• Gender gaps
– Men and women are raised differently
• Women are socialized more in the private sphere
(in the home as opposed to outside the home)
– McCormack studies voting
» Though men and women don’t necessarily all vote
together, women are influenced by their private
sphere upbringing
» Obama is much more popular with women
– Did you know that Barack Obama is much
more popular with women voters? There was
an 18% gender gap in 2012 and a 12% gap in
• Discourses
– Smith
• The way people talk about a subject = discourses
• Celebrity discourse
• School discourse (words like rubric and victory lap
are specific to going to school in Ontario)
• Social media discourse (Ms. G has no idea what
hashtag YM problems means)
– All of these influence the way we think and act,
potentially leading to social change
• As a class, write a sentence that shows “celebrity discourse” and
email it to Ms. G who probably won’t understand it (that’s the point –
we speak different discourses).
Name the theory, key concept or theorist
associated with each of the following:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
_______________ Skilled people with access to development funds; they have
influence.
_______________ Require consensus on basic values and beliefs in order to take
action. (synonym for multicultural)
_______________ Growth of knowledge from generation to generation allows
development of new ways of doing things.
_______________ In this older theory, equilibrium is the balancing-out factor
when institutions struggle with something new.
_______________ Ways of communicating that influence the way we think and
act.
_______________ Women are socialized in the private sphere which influences
their political viewpoints.
_______________ Proximity to the core determines wealth.
_______________ The core of it is at the centre of profit made from international
trade.
_______________ By adopting and speaking in favour of something new, they
cause the diffusion of innovations.
_______________ Your generation has a very different one, rooted in social
networking, while your parents’ may focus more on the world of work. We have to
take them into account for social change to occur.
References
Bain, C. et al. (2002). Transitions in society:
the challenge of change. Toronto:
Oxford University Press.
De Coeur, T. et al. (2012). Challenge and
change: patterns, trends, and shifts in
society. Toronto: McGraw-Hill Ryerson.