Social Change

Social change is a concept many of us take for granted or don't really even understand. No
society has ever remained the same. Change is always happening. We accept change as
inevitable. The word ‘change’ denotes a difference in anything observed over some period.
Social change therefore, would mean observable differences in any social phenomena over any
period.

Definition of Social Change

 George Andrew Lundberg (American sociologist) defined social change as “Any
modifications in the established patterns of inter-human relationship and standard of
conduct.”

 Morris Ginsberg (British sociologist) defined social change as, “By social change, I
understand a change in social structure, e.g., the size of the society, the composition or
the balance of its parts or the type of its organization”.
 Wilbert Moore (American sociologist) defined social change as ‘A significant alteration
in structure over time in behavior patterns and culture, including norms and values’.

Social Change has two broad aspects – Structural and Cultural. Structural changes include
urbanization, industrialization, etc. Cultural changes include – emancipation of women, dilution
of caste, change in family forms and social values and so on.

Examples of social change

Collective behavior and social movements are just two of the forces driving social change,
which is the change in society created through social movements as well as external factors like
environmental shifts or technological innovations. Essentially, any disruptive shift in the status
quo, be it intentional or random, human-caused or natural, can lead to social change. Social
change often occurs as a result of social movements. There are countless examples throughout
history in every country on earth. Some of the most famous (many of which are ongoing and/or
evolving) include:

 The Reformation
 The abolition of the transatlantic slave trade
 The Civil Rights movement
 The feminist movement
 The green movement