Section Overview
The section provides an overview of social change, emphasizing its definition, importance, and transformative nature. It explores major theories of social change, including evolutionary, conflict, functionalist, and cyclical perspectives, offering different insights into the mechanisms behind societal transformations. The section outlines the driving forces of social change, such as technological innovations, social movements, economic factors, and environmental conditions, and highlights their significant impact on propelling societies into new eras. It discusses the consequences of social change, acknowledging both positive and negative outcomes, including technological progress, increased equality, social disruption, and exacerbated inequality. The section presents a case study on the rise of social media in the 21st century, demonstrating the application of theoretical concepts to real-world scenarios and underscoring the complexity of social change. It reflects on the role of social institutions in facilitating or hindering social change and considers the potential future of societal transformations. Understanding and anticipating social change are crucial in an evolving world.
Reading Assignment for Section 6.5
Read the following subsection from our online textbook: Section 6.5: Social Change.
What You Will Learn
In this section, you’ll explore the definition and significance of social change as it transforms human interactions and societal structures over time. You’ll learn about major theories of social change, such as evolutionary, conflict, functionalist, and cyclical theories, to understand the mechanisms behind societal transformations. Additionally, you’ll discover the driving forces of social change, including technological innovations, social movements, economic factors, and environmental conditions.
Student Learning Outcomes for Section 6.5
- SLO 1: Students will understand the definition and importance of social change as transformative alterations in human interactions and societal structures over time.
- SLO 2: Students will analyze major theories of social change (evolutionary, conflict, functionalist, cyclical) to gain insights into the mechanisms behind societal transformations.
- SLO 3: Students will identify the driving forces of social change (technological innovations, social movements, economic factors, environmental conditions) and their significant impact on propelling societies into new eras.
- SLO 4: Students will evaluate the consequences of social change, recognizing both positive (technological progress, increased equality) and negative outcomes (social disruption, exacerbated inequality).
- SLO 5: Students will apply theoretical concepts to a case study on the rise of social media in the 21st century, understanding the complexity of social change and its multifaceted nature with both benefits and challenges.
Modification History File Created: 05/07/2023 Last Modified: 06/06/2024
[Contents]
This work is licensed under an Open Educational Resource-Quality Master Source (OER-QMS) License.
