Collective behavior handout

University of Saint LouisTuguegarao City

SCHOOL OF EDUCATION, ARTS AND SCIENCESDepartment of Social Sciences

First Semester, Academic Year 2011-2012

Name: _______________________ Class Schedule: _____________________ Score: _______Instructor: _______________________ Date: _______

COLLECTIVE BEHAVIOR

- It is the study of relatively spontaneous, unstructured social behavior and its products.- It frequently causes relatively rapid changes in people’s behavior and brings about changes in ideas.- It is an activity involving a large number of people, often spontaneous and sometimes controversial.- The study of collective behavior is difficult to study for three reasons:

Collective behavior is wide-ranging. All collective behavior is complex. Much collective behavior is transitory.

- All collective behavior involves the action of a collectivity, a large number of people whose minimal interaction occurs in the absence of well-defined and conventional norms. There are two types of collectivities, localized and dispersed. Collectivities differ from social groups in three ways: limited social interaction; unclear social

boundaries; weak and unconventional norms.- It has several important characteristics;

1. Collective behavior is not synonymous with all human social action.2. The collectivities which are formed are distinct from organized human groups.3. Collective behavior depends on emotional contagion.4. Participants in collective behavior usually do not behave according to the traditional norms.5. People engaged in collective behavior tend to act more emotionally.6. Collective behavior usually emerges when there is an unusual or unforeseen problem.7. Collective behavior usually lasts a relatively short period of time.8. Collective behavior is frequently marked by a sense of urgency.9. Collective behavior is fluid and unpredictable.10. The boundaries of emotional contagion, and thus collective behavior, are not set by physical

proximity or even group membership, but rather by the limits of effective communication.11. Collective behavior forms a continuum from a spontaneous behavior to very structured behavior.12. Collective behavior is important not only because it makes headlines and sometimes affects great

events, but also because spontaneous activities may give rise to new norms and values.

References:Dodgen, Lynda I. & Adrian M. Rapp, Sociology: Looking through the Window of the World. Kendall/Hunt Publishing

Company: United States of America. 2002Schaefer, Richard T. Sociology Matters. McGraw- Hill Companies: United States of America. 2008Schaefer, Richard T. Sociology: A Brief Introduction. McGraw- Hill Companies: United States of America. 2008

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MR. HERBERT SAQUING CORPUZSociology Instructor

- Forms of Collective Behavior

1. CROWD It refers to a temporary gathering of people joined to share a common event. It is a temporary gathering of people who share a common focus of attention and whose

members influence one another. Example- Fans of Charice Pempengco in her Concert Crowds are a good source of collective behavior for several reasons;

a. People in a crowd tend to be suggestible to ideas and actions from other people.b. People in a crowd feel insignificant and unrecognized because they are a member of a

group.c. People of the crowd are more apt to behave in a more spontaneous manner.d. People in a crowd feel invulnerable.e. A crowd is largely unorganized.f. There are loose internal controls within a crowd.

There are several types of crowds;a. Casual Crowd

It is the most loosely structured of all crowds and consists of a collection of individuals such as an ordinary crowd in a street that have little or no purpose in common.

Example: When we waited to buy our tickets to Vice Ganda Concertb. Conventional Crowd

It is deliberately planned and relatively structured. It is conventional in the sense that their behavior follows established social norms or

conventions. Example: When we got to Vice Ganda Concert and found an area at the Araneta

Coliseumc. Expressive Crowd

It is usually organized to permit the personal gratification of its members, an activity that is viewed as an end itself.

Example: When Vice Ganda came out into the audience, we were all yelling and shouting.

d. Acting Crowd It is a crowd in action. It has three basic types;

a. Mob It is very emotional, disorderly crowd which may use destructive and violent

behavior to achieve its goal. It refers to one crowd that is fairly unified and single-minded in its aggressive

intent.



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Its acts include lynching, looting or destroying property. It is highly emotional crowd that pursues some violent or destructive goal. Lynch mobs are the best known example.

b. Riot It is a destructive outburst of collective behavior with the participants usually

experiencing a feeling of heightened arousal. It is a social eruption that is highly emotional, violent and undirected. It is apt to happen during times of political problems and changes.

c. Orgy It is any proceeding marked by unbridled indulgence of passion. Tension is released through shared fun. Example: Thanksgiving feast where we eat ourselves into a total couch

potato.e. Protest Crowd

Deliberately assembled It contains leadership design to draw public support.



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Casual Crowds Conventional Crowds

Expressive Crowds

Acting Crowds Protest Crowds

Simplest Grow out of relatively structured

gatherings

Sought out activities

Mobs and Riots Deliberately assembled

Gather to watch a minor event

A few emergent norms

Act in line with institutionalized

norm

Attracted to the excitement of the

event

Dominant expression is joy

Hostility toward a singular target or

a wide shifting range of targets

Contain leadership

design to draw public support

2. MASS HYSTERIA It is irrational, compulsive behavior which spreads among people. It is based on false beliefs. Intense, fearful, and seemingly irrational reaction to perceived but often misunderstood or

imaginary threat It is a form of dispersed collective behavior in which people respond to a real or imagined event

with irrational, frantic, and often self-destructive behavior.

3. PANIC It happens when a number of people react to a threat in the environment with fear and anxiety. It occurs in the face of danger and this danger is usually is in relationship to physical survivor. It is a fearful arousal or collective flight based on a generalized belief that may or may not be

accurate. It is a form of localized collective behavior by which people react to a threat or other stimulus

with irrational, frantic and often self-destructive behavior.

4. FAD It involves the quick spread of an unusual pattern of behavior through a large number of people. It is a temporary pattern of behavior involving large numbers of people. It generally involves some relatively superficial and external pattern of behavior such as a way

of dress. It seems to spread primarily among individuals in similar social circumstances; they represent

heightened cue- taking from other members of one’s own social group or from members of some group to which one would like to belong.

Periodic popularity of styles. Occurs most frequently in modern societies where change is appreciated. It is an unconventional social pattern that people embrace briefly but enthusiastically.

5. FASHION It involves personal appearance or behavior. It reflects a society’s interests and motives and changes more slowly than do fads. We accept a fashion and we expect it to change periodically. It is a social pattern favored for a time by a large number of people.

6. CRAZES



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The behavior of the participant may be viewed as outrageous by the observers because the behavior consumes so much time and energy.

7. RUMOR It is an unconfirmed communication usually transmitted by word of mouth in a situation of

anxiety and stress. It is a report or information that travel from person to person on an informal basis. It is unsubstantiated information spread informally, often by word of mouth. Rumors have three

essential characteristics: Rumor thrives in a climate of ambiguity. Rumor is unstable. Rumor is difficult to stop.

Gossip is rumor about people’s personal affairs.

8. PUBLIC OPINION It is an attitude expressed concerning matters of public policy. It is a widespread attitude about controversial issues, is another example of highly dispersed

collective behavior. It is often influenced by propaganda, information presented with the intention of shaping public

opinion.

SOCIAL MOVEMENTS

- Social movements are organized activities that encourage or discourage social change.

1. Social movements may be characterized in terms of the breadth and depth of the change they are seeking. Combining these variables results in four types of social movements: Alternative social movements, which pursue limited change in certain individuals Redemptive social movements, which promote radical change in certain individuals Reformative social movements, which seek moderate changes in the whole society Revolutionary social movements, which promote sweeping transformation of an entire society

2. Explaining Social Movements.

Deprivation theory holds that social movements arise among people who feel deprived, compared to others. Relative deprivation, then, is a perceived disadvantage arising from some specific comparison.

Critical Evaluation- Since most people experience some deprivation most of the time, this approach does not adequately explain why movements only arise some of the time. It also has a tendency to be circular and to focus more attention on the setting in which a movement emerges than on the movement itself.

Mass-society theory traces the origin of social movements to rootless individuals seeking a sense of membership and purpose.



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Critical Evaluation- The concept of a mass society is difficult to operationalize. In addition, this approach minimizes the legitimate political discontent which underlies many movements. Empirical research sometimes supports and sometimes challenges mass-society theory.

Structural-strain theory, developed by Neil Smelser, argues that six factors promote the development of a social movement: Structural conduciveness. Structural strain. Growth and spread of an explanation. Precipitating factors. Mobilization for action. Lack of social control.

Critical Evaluation- This theory recognizes the complexity of the factors underlying movement development and is distinctly social in focus, but it is circular and incomplete.

Resource-mobilization theory focuses on the resources available to a movement.Critical Evaluation- This approach ignores the fact that even without extensive resources, groups of poor people who are committed and well organized can sponsor effective social movements. It also may overstate the extent to which powerful people (with resources) are willing to challenge the status quo.

Cultural theory developed from the recognition by sociologists that social movements depend on cultural symbols.

Critical Evaluation- This approach reminds us that not just material resources but also cultural symbols form the foundation of social movements. However, powerful symbols support the status quo.

New social movements theory notes the importance of quality-of-life issues to recent movements.Critical Evaluation- This approach may overstate the differences between traditional and new social movements.

3. Gender and Social Movements: Because of patriarchy, men have generally been more active than women in social movements:

4. Stages of Social Movements Emergence. Coalescence. Bureaucratization. Decline, which may occur for four reasons:

The movement may have succeeded. It may succumb to poor organization. It may be co-opted. It may be repressed.

5. Social Movements and Social Change Social movements exist to encourage or to resist social change. Social change is both the cause and the consequence of social movements.



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6. Looking Ahead: Social Movements in the Twenty-First Century. While social movements have historically brought about change, new issues ensure that social

movements will continue to shape our way of life. The scope of social change is likely to increase for three reasons:

Historically excluded categories of people are gaining a greater political voice. The technology of the Information Revolution has drawn the world closer together. Social movements are now uniting people throughout the entire world.

Please do not just focus on referring from this handout. Read other sociology books and internet resources to enrich your understanding on the topic.



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Collective behavior handout

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