Social movement

  According to Jenkins (1983), social movement is an organized group of people who are driven by structural conflicts in social institutions and who focus on long-term social changes and collection action. The author introduces the resource mobilization theory and asserts that organized groups form a social movement to achieve institutionalized actions and institutional changes. Both changes are designed to build a new social structure in the society. In addition, the theory  mainly reflect on the institutional change movement  and assert that the purpose of this movement is to  create rational actions  and centralized organization  which will control the resources  and create tangible gains (JenKins, 1983). The author also introduces mobilization and asserts that in mobilization, the organized group needs collective control and collective action for controlling resources.

According to Kitchelt, social movement is a political structure or a political group which   creates a protest movement with an aim of achieving social mobilization, resources and institutional arrangement. In this definition, the author asserts that social movement takes different approaches which are explained by theoretical approaches. First, Marxian-macrosociology states that social movement is formed with aim of achieving socio-economic development such as the anti-nuclear movement. Second, microsociology approach states that social movement is created by social protests group for the need of social changes on policy and institutions.  Third, resource-mobilization approach state that social movement is created by a social group that needs rational decision making and collective actions for fulfilling the national interest (Kitchelt, N.D). Generally, the different approaches show that political opportunity structures   leads to the creation of social movements through different ways. For example, the social group is influenced by instructional rules where the social group needs a change or creation of new policy.

 

 According to Macadam (1986), social movement arises when an organized group is influenced by motivational factors toward achieving specific goals in social setting.  The author introduces the differential recruitment and asserts that many groups creates social movement in dealing with the issue although different group posses different characteristics which drive them toward reaction.  In social moment, the social group may have high-risk activism or low-risk activism (Macadam, 1986). The former means that social groups in social movement have strong ties which are rooted from strong relationship. The strong connected is responsible for creating high-risk activism. The latter means that social groups have weak ties for example social media as it does not directly participate or motivate in social movement (Macadam, 1986). 

 According to Tarrow (1994), “contentious collective action” is a process where an organized group or “discursive communities” create social movement and develops claims to challenge the authority to take collective actions and bring solidarity.

 This definition means that all groups in social movement demonstrates their interest and requires the authority to take collective action and bring sustainable development. Interaction and relation between the social movement and the authority is reinforced by challenging actions and cultural frames (Tarrow, 1994). In addition, the definition by Tarrow allows the reader to understand that social movement emerges when social actors lack political opportunities and when they join forces, they claim for collective action. Other important point to understand is that contentious collective actions are associated with positive results in that by challenging the opponents, the authority takes steps to bring solidarity and fulfill the interest of a particular population. Thus, the purpose of contentious collective actions is to bring social solution through collective challenges (Tarrow, 1994).

 

Reference

JenKins J. Craig. (1983). Resource Mobilization Theory and the Study of Social Movements, Annual

Review of Sociology, Vol. 9 (1983), pp. 527-553

 

Kitschelt P. Herbert. (N.D). Political Opportunity Structures and Political Protest: Anti-Nuclear

Movements in Four Democracies.  Printed in Great Britain B.J. Pol.S. 16, 57-85

 

Tarrow Sidney. (1994). Power in Movement, Cambridge U Press

 

McAdam (1986).  Recruitment to High-Risk Activism: The Case of Freedom Summer. American Journal

of Sociology, Vol. 92, No. 1.  The University of Chicago Press