SOCIAL

MOVEMENTS AND
SOCIAL POLICY
Ethel Jane M. Queppet, RSW
 SOCIAL
MOVEMENTS
 “You must be
the change
you wish to see
in the world.”
-Gandhi
 “Power
concedes
nothing
without a
demand.”
-Frederick Douglas
Cont.
 FOUR STAGES OF SOCIAL MOVEMENTS HERBERT
BLUMER, WHO IDENTIFIED FOUR STAGES OF SOCIAL
MOVEMENTS’ LIFECYCLES.

Stage 1: Emergence
as described by Blumer, the “social ferment”
stage (De la Porta & Diani, 2006). Within this
stage, social movements are very preliminary and
there is little to no organization. Instead, this
stage can be thought of as widespread discontent
(Macionis, 2001; Hopper, 1950).
Cont.

Stage 2: Coalescence
At this next stage in the life cycle,
social movements have overcome some
obstacles which many never overcome.
Often, social unrest or discontent passes
without any organizing or widespread
mobilization.
Cont.

Stage 3: Bureaucratization
This stage, defined by Blumer as
“formalization,” (De la Porta &
Diani, 2006) is characterized by
higher levels of organization and
coalitionbased strategies.
Cont.

Stage 4: Decline
Finally, the last stage in the social movement life cycle is
decline, or “institutionalization.” Decline does not necessarily
mean failure for social movements though. Instead, Miller (1999)
argues, there are four ways in which social movements can
decline:
• Repression,
• Co-optation,
• Success, and
• Failure,
 REPRESSION

Repression occurs when authorities, or agents

acting on behalf of the authorities, use measures
(sometimes violent) to control or destroy a social
movement. Further, Miller (1999) states
“repressive actions may be defined as legitimate by
the state…but they are never legitimate from the
perspective of the movement” (p. 305).
 CO-OPTATION

Co-optation occurs when movement leaders

come to associate with authorities or
movement targets more than with the social
movement constituents.
 SUCCESS

Success Of course, not all social movements end in

defeat through repression or co-optation; some
decline because they are successful. Smaller,
localized movements with very specific goals often
have a better chance at outright success.
 FAILURE

Failure of social movements due to

organizational or strategic failings is
common for many organizations. When
failure occurs at the organizational level,
Miller argues, it is usually for two reasons:
factionalism and encapsulation.
SOCIAL POLICY
 SOCIAL POLICY

• Aim to improve human welfare and to meet human

needs for education, health, housing and social
security.

• Seeks to enhance the quality of life of the

disadvantage and marginalized sector of the society.
 SOCIAL POLICY

• Primary goal of social welfare policy is the

development of the poor to move them from
survival to subsistence and to make them
self-reliant members of the society.
 KEY CONCEPTS ON SOCIAL
POLICY

• 1. PRINCIPLE
• It may have a moral or ethical meaning.
Standing up on certain beliefs in what is right
and what is wrong and upholding certain moral
standards.
 PRINCIPLE AND SOCIAL POLICY

• “No individual in need, no matter how poor

should be left without access to health care
and social services.”
 WHAT TO LOOK IN SOCIAL
POLICIES?

• 1. WHAT
• What it is all about, what are the content?

• 2. HOW
• How it is developed, administered and implemented.

• 3. WHY
• Why it exists?
PRINCIPLES OF SOCIAL POLICY

• EQUALITY
• EGALITARIANISM is the expression of
equality in its purest.
• It find ways to ensure that people enjoy the
same results or outcomes in life.
PRINCIPLES OF SOCIAL POLICY

• EQUITY
• It is necessary to treat individuals, families or
groups equitably rather equally.
• It is an approach that treats people fairly, but
differently, in order to ensure that there is
some equality between them at the end.
 OBJECTIVES OF SOCIAL WELFARE
POLICY

• 1. REDUCE POVERTY
• 2. MAXIMIZE WELFARE
• 3. PURSUE EQUALITY
 REFERENCES

• Introduction to Social Movements and Social Change

NAACP. 2011. “100 Years of History.” Retrieved (
http://www.naacp.org/pages/naacp-history).

21.1. Collective Behaviour

Blumer, Herbert. 1969. “Collective Behavior.” Pp. 67–121 in Principles of Sociology, edited
by A.M. Lee. New York: Barnes and Noble.

Le Bon, Gustave. 1960 [1895]. The Crowd: A Study of the Popular Mind. New York: Viking
Press.

Lofland, John. 1993. “Collective Behavior: The Elementary Forms.” Pp. 70–75 in
Collective Behavior and Social Movements, edited by Russel Curtis and Benigno Aguirre.
Boston: Allyn and Bacon.