LO 10.1: Describe social change and social reproduction.
Social change affects multiple aspects of social life simultaneously. Climate change can lead to human migration, political instability, and violence.
The world population is estimated to be 8 billion people in 2025. The global population growth rate has decreased since the 1960s. The United States is the third most populous country.
Thomas Malthus (Malthusian theory) proposed that unchecked population growth would outstrip the food supply. However, agricultural innovations have increased crop yields. Further, political factors, such as war and totalitarianism, have historically caused famines.
Population size affects the consumption of natural resources and waste production. Population growth is uneven across different regions.
The demographic transition model suggests that high birth rates decline over time, leading to lower population growth. The U.S. has low birth and death rates, with population growth driven by immigration. The U.S. total fertility rate is 1.84, below the replacement level.
LO 10.2: Contrast different forms of collective behavior.
Collective behavior includes various social phenomena such as crowds, riots, mobs, fads, and mutual aid. It involves coordinated efforts of two or more people acting as a group. Sociologists study how group behavior differs from individual behavior.
Collective behavior may have negative (arson) and positive (helping behavior) elements.
LO 10.3: Summarize how social movements work.
Social movements are organized efforts to promote or resist social change. Examples include the American Revolution, abolition, temperance, women’s suffrage, civil rights movement, and more. The 2020s have seen movements related to COVID-19, Black Lives Matter, and election denial. Transnational movements, such as those focused on protecting the environment also exist.
Media stunts, boycotts, sit-ins, roadblocks, marches, letter-writing campaigns, lobbying, demonstrations, divestment, hashtags, collective solidarity, allyship, and lawsuits are all forms of collective action. Just Stop Oil engaged in media stunts like gluing themselves to art and throwing tomato soup at a painting to protest new oil, gas, and coal projects.
Reactionary movements resist social change and aim to bring back past norms (e.g., Trump’s “Make America Great Again” campaign). Reform movements seek change in norms or policy without broad structural change (e.g., Flint, Michigan water crisis activism). Revolutionary movements aim for broad structural changes and may use disruptive tactics (e.g., American Revolution). Alternative movements focus on changing a single norm (e.g., anti-smoking campaigns). Redemptive movements try to change individual attitudes and behaviors (e.g., World Wildlife Fund promoting plant-based diets). Transnational movements exist in multiple countries and share similar goals (e.g., environmental protection)
Theories of Social Movements include relative deprivation theory, where movements arise when people feel their standard of living should be better. Resource mobilization theory argues successful movements secure necessary resources. Framing theory shows how movements succeed based on their appeal. Political process theory focuses on how favorable political contexts aid movements. Multifactor theory argues that multiple factors influence the emergence and success of movements.
Countermovements oppose the goals of other social movements, often driven by economic interests or ideologies.
LO 10.4: Explain how the climate crisis contributes to social change.
Climate refers to the average weather conditions over time in a geographic area, which can be tropical, dry, continental, polar, or temperate. Climate change is the alteration of average weather over time, which has accelerated due to human activities, making the Earth warmer.
Human activities like burning fossil fuels, deforestation, and large-scale livestock farming contribute to the greenhouse effect. Greenhouse gases such as methane and carbon dioxide trap heat from the sun, causing the Earth to warm.
A warmer climate leads to more frequent extreme weather events like severe flooding, stronger hurricanes, droughts, heat waves, and cold waves. In 2023, climate disasters caused approximately 500 deaths in the United States and 24,000 globally.
The climate crisis has social dimensions, including changes in consumption, infrastructure breakdown, adaptation, and migration. For example Hurricane Helene in 2024 caused massive destruction in North Carolina, leading to infrastructure damage and school closures.
People may be forced to migrate after extreme weather events, as seen with Hurricane Katrina evacuees. Climate change can also prevent migration due to financial constraints.
Governments engage in climate action planning, including building seawalls, educating the public, and creating protected areas. Individuals respond in various ways, such as the wealthy building bunkers or buying military-grade vehicles.
LO 10.5: Apply the social construction of reality approach to the climate crisis.
The 2021 Pacific Northwest heat wave affected the northwestern United States and western Canada, with temperatures up to 40°F above normal. The heat wave resulted in nearly a thousand heat-related deaths and significant wildlife and farm animal casualties.
Journalistic accounts of heat waves influence public perception, often portraying extreme heat as manageable through individual actions. Initial media images showed people playing in water, suggesting that cooling off is within individual control. Over time, media coverage began to highlight the dangers and the need for emergency aid.
Klinenberg’s (2002) content analysis of the 1995 Chicago Heat Wave found that media images focused on coping mechanisms and death. The 2021 Pacific Northwest heat wave media coverage initially promoted individual coping mechanisms rather than structural solutions.
The 1995 Chicago Heat Wave disproportionately affected Black, older, poor individuals living alone. Public perception of danger from extreme heat is correlated with sociodemographic factors, which do not always reflect actual risk.
Understanding how media and public construct heat waves has implications for policy and community actions. Research shows that images can influence public understanding and actions regarding climate risks.
LO 10.6: Analyze how social structure influences social change.
Sociology focuses on the social dimensions of the climate crisis, such as the responses to extreme weather events like floods, wildfires, and hurricanes. Sociologists study choices about moving or rebuilding and the larger social context influencing these choices. They use surveys and fieldwork observations to understand contextual factors influencing actions, such as living in flood-prone areas.
Hurricane Harvey occurred in 2017 along the Texas Gulf Coast, causing catastrophic flooding and significant displacement. It disproportionately affected black, Hispanic, and low-income residents. Renters were more willing to move, while homeowners with mortgages were financially tied to their homes. Wealthier neighborhoods and those with more White residents moved closer to their original homes.
Federal programs purchase properties affected by climate change to help people move to more resilient areas. Programs are often insufficient for buying new homes. Moving entire communities is complex and time-consuming, with no federal funds for pre-disaster relocation. For example the relocation of the residents of Newtok, Alaska took decades and faced numerous challenges.
LO 10.7: Describe how the climate crisis and stratification are related.
Wealthier nations and individuals contribute more to greenhouse emissions and climate change activities, while lower-income individuals and countries bear the brunt of the costs and adverse outcomes. The wealthiest 10% of the world’s population produces 48% of carbon emissions. In the United States, most households contribute a disproportionate share of carbon emissions.
In North America, 68.8% of carbon emissions are produced by the wealthiest 10% of individuals. The wealthiest U.S. households contribute significantly more to global emissions due to larger houses and frequent flying.
Most global greenhouse emissions come from industry and agriculture, not individuals. Food production, especially beef cattle production, results in significant greenhouse gas emissions.
Households contribute 7.14% of emissions from passenger travel and 10.9% from residential buildings. Lifestyle choices like using public transportation, living in smaller homes, and reducing meat consumption can lower emissions. Urban design influences lifestyle choices, with U.S. cities designed for cars and European cities prioritizing bicycles and public transportation.
Capitalist economies promote growth regardless of environmental costs, contributing more to climate change. Fast fashion is an example of how capitalist economies increase environmental impact.
Lower-income nations face severe consequences of climate change despite contributing the least to the problem. These nations struggle to mitigate the effects of increasingly intense and frequent storms.
Climate change and other ecological factors cause human displacement. Haiti’s history of natural disasters and political instability has led to significant migration.
Marginalized groups disproportionately experience environmental risks. Studies show a correlation between exposure to air pollution, race, and class. Environmental justice involves addressing unequal environmental risks due to racism and classism.