Sociology Lecture # 6 Arooj Shahzad

Year: 2018

Social and Cultural Change and Social Policy

What is Change?
 Change is the difference between two points in Time (T)
 T2 – T1 = D = Change

Social Change
 Changes in the social structure and social relationships
 Examples: Changes in: Age Distribution, Education Levels, Neighborliness,
Urbanization

Social Change Definition

 According to Merrill, “Social Change involves such ideas as interaction, movement,
growth and function.”
 Maciver and Page: “Social Change refers to a process responsive to many types of
changes, to changes in the man made conditions of life, to changes in the attitudes and
beliefs of man, and to the changes that go beyond the human control to the biological and
physical nature of things.”

Examples of Social Change

 Industrial Revolution
 Abolution of Slavery
 Women’s Suffrage Movement
Cultural Change Definition
 Horton and Hunt: “Changes in the culture of society is called cultural change.”
 David Dressier and Donald Caens: “Cultural change is the modification or
discontinuance of existing tried and tested procedures transmitted to us from the culture
of the past, as well as the introduction of new procedures.”

Sources of Cultural Change

 Discovery:
o Horton and Hunt: “A discovery is a shared human perception of an aspect of
reality which already exists.”
o Discovery includes any addition to the existing knowledge
o Iron, copper and other metals are the discoveries of science

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Sociology Lecture # 6 Arooj Shahzad
Year: 2018
 Invention:
o Horton and Hunt: “A new combination or a new use of existing knowledge is
called invention.”
o The first inventions in China were paper making, silk weaving etc.
 Diffusion:
o Horton and Hunt: “The spread of cultural traits from group to group is called
diffusion.”
o Some examples of diffusions of cultural traits in various societies:
 The use of silk was first discovered in China
 Window-Glass was invented in Egypt
 Sugar was first made in India
 Acculturation:
o In this process two or more cultures come into contact.
 Assimilation:
o It is the result of acculturation.
o Assimilation is the process in which one larger and more powerful culture may
engulf small culture.

Resistance to Cultural Change

1) Cultural Lag:
 One aspect (especially technological) of culture goes ahead of the others
(especially social) due to fast innovations in the former and thus the latter remains
unadjusted.
2) Economic Factor:
 Economic factor may hinder in cultural change in the respect that one wants to
live in modern building but cannot due to insufficiency of economic resources.
3) Isolation:
 Factors, geographical, religious or social may prevent the people of a culture from
being aware of new things.
4) Punishment:
 Some of the changes are not encouraged by the society and those who adopt are
punished.

Difference between Social and Cultural Change

 Social change refers specifically to alterations in social relationships among people in
groups, whereas cultural change refers to change in material and non-material cultural
elements both.

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Sociology Lecture # 6 Arooj Shahzad
Year: 2018
 Social change refers to the changes in the social structure (status and role of persons),
social institutions and overall social relationships that help in the making up a society. It
involves modifications in the ways in which people make a living, rear a family, educate
their children, and govern themselves.

Four Major Characteristics of the Process of Social Change

1) Social Change happens all the time.

o Inevitable
o Cultural Lag
2) Social Change is sometimes intentional but often Unplanned.
o Market Researchers motivate people for new products
o Automobile  Mobility
o Unintended Effects  Accidents/Deaths
3) Social Change is Controvertial.
o Good and Bad consequences
o Example:
 Impact of Industrial Changes
 Women Empowerment
4) Some changes matter more than others:
o Passing Significance
 (Fashions)
o Transform the entire world
 (Computers, TV)

Causes of Social Change

 A large part of change in society is caused by change in culture. Culture is a system that
constantly loses and gains components. Invention, discovery and diffusion are
considered to be the main sources of cultural change.
 Demographic change is caused by an increase in birth and decline in death and
migration of populations. Change occurs from the demographic transition in society.
 Social change is also caused by tension and conflict. Again social division based on
class, caste, gender, ethnicity, estate, etc. have also been important sources of conflict in
society.
 Social movements are organized efforts of groups of people to bring about deliberate
change in the values, norms, institutions, culture relationships and traditions of the
society. They also generate new identities and a new perspective.

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Sociology Lecture # 6 Arooj Shahzad
Year: 2018

Factors promoting Acceptance of Change

 Prestige of the Innovator:

o The higher the prestige of the Innovator, the more readily the innovation may be
accepted.
 Personality of the Innovator:
o Sometimes the personality traits of the innovator, if popular among the people, are
more helpful in ready acceptance of his/her innovations.
 Personal relations:
o Personal relatons as in family, neighbourhood or friendship also promote early
adoption of new things.
 Majority affiliation of the innovator with the public:
o It is an essential factor for recognition and acceptance of the innovations.
 If the new item confirms to the existing values
 Efficiency of new item should be greater
 Its cost should be less
 It should not be unpleasant
 Ease of handling is more to be accepted

Cultural Factors Hampering Social Change

 Cultural Inertia:
o Some of the cultures provide a condition for the resistance to change.
o The customary ways of life and cultural values have been laid so deeply in their
nature that any external element doesnot find a room as to become a part of their
culture.
 Cultural Formalism:
o There are various customary ways in the life of people to follow, as rituals,
ceremonies, manners, conventions and other behavios for various other occasions.
o These customs get instilled into the nature of people as an essential part of their
behavior and hardly they suffer change
 Cultural Lag

Socio Cultural Changes of Pakistani Society

 The old tradition of Endogamy in marriage have lost importance in urban areas.
 Exogamy is growing popular and new biradris are emerging
 The caste system has lost its effects in urbaan areas.
 The adoption of mechanized farming has become popular.
 The literacy percentage has increased

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Sociology Lecture # 6 Arooj Shahzad
Year: 2018
 The huge network of educational institutions
 The separation of East Pakistan into Bangladesh was a great socio-cultural change in our
society
 The nuclear family is growing popular
 Wome are entering into various jobs
 The industrial expansion has increased the standard of living of the people.
Social Planning
 Social planning is the process by which policymakers - legislators, government agencies,
planners, and, often, funders - try to solve community problems or improve conditions in
the community by devising and implementing policies intended to have certain results.
 These policies may take the form of laws, regulations, incentives, media campaigns,
programs or services, information - a wide range of possibilities.
 A community or state Board of Health that adopts a regulation banning smoking in
particular places, for example, is trying both to protect the public from second-hand
smoke and to reduce smoking in general.

Effects of Industralization
 Increase in agricultural output
 Increase in manufacturing output
 Employment opportunities in numerous diverse sectors
 Increase in amount of consumer goods
 Increase in availability of food
 Increase in Population growth
 Technological Development
 Long Working Hours
 Low pay rate
 Unsafe working conditions
 Child Labor

Causes of Urbanization
 Refugees
 Rural Urban Migration
 Industralization in Cities
 Better facilities of living
 Negligence in Rural Development
 Decrease in labor demand in agriculture due to mechanization
 Miseries of Feudalism

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Sociology Lecture # 6 Arooj Shahzad
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 Escaping tendency among rural youth
 Role of Media
 Nuclear family
Effects of Urbanization
 Over Population
 Decline of Primary Relations
 Increase in crime and violence
 Shortage of resources
 Unemployment
 Housing and settleent problems
 Environmental pollution
 Poor hygene and sanitation

Modernization
 Modernization, in sociology, is the transformation from a traditional, rural, agrarian
society to a secular, urban, industrial society.
 Modern society is industrial society. To modernize a society is, first of all, to industrialize
it. The rise of modern society has been linked with the emergence of industrial society.
All the features that are associated with modernity can be shown to be related to the set of
changes that, no more than two centuries ago, brought into being the industrial type of
society. This suggests that the terms industrialism and industrial society imply far more
than the economic and technological components that make up their core. Industrialism is
a way of life that encompasses profound economic, social, political, and cultural changes.
It is by undergoing the comprehensive transformation of industrialization that societies
become modern.

Modern Tools of Communication on Social Change

 Google Alerts
 Twitter
 Social Bookmarking
 Google Translate
 Social Networking; Facebook
 Sharing Documents
 Skype
 Mobile Communication

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Sociology Lecture # 6 Arooj Shahzad
Year: 2018

Social Policy
 Social Policy is the study of social services and the welfare state. In general terms, it
looks at the idea of social welfare, and its relationship to politics and society. More
specifically, it also considers: policy and administration of social services, including
policies for health, housing, income maintenance, education and social work; needs and
issues affecting the users of services, including poverty, old age, health, disability, and
family policy; and the delivery of welfare.

Sociology Past Papers: Questions Practice

Question # 1 (2018)

How do you see the future of Pakistani Society resulting from the effects of
Industrialization, Modernization, Urbanization and Modern means of communication
upon social change processes? Discuss with examples.

Question # 2 (2009)

Define the term Social Change. How it occurs in a traditional society? Discuss it in detail.

Question # 3 (2001)

What factors are related to social and cultural change? Give examples of Pakistan.

Question # 4 (2000)

Define and differentiate social and cultural change. Discuss the impediments to change
with reference to the resistance to change in Pakistani society and culture.