Understanding Social

Problems, Social Change

and Development

Mike Antolin
Master of Development Communication
University of the Philippines Open University
Module 1 - Report

Social Problems Social Change Development

Social Problems
What is Social Problem?
Contrasting Definitions

Objectivist Definition : "Social problems are those social conditions

identified by scientific inquiry and values as detrimental to human well-
being." Jerome G. Manis, Analyzing Social Problems (1976), p. 25.

Constructionist Definition : "[W]e define social problems as the activities of

individuals or groups making assertions of grievances and claims with
respect to some putative conditions." Malcolm Spector and John I. Kitsuse,
Constructing Social Problems (1977), p. 75.
 Natural History of Social Problems
Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4

Emergence and Legitimacy Renewed Development of

Claims Making Claims Making Alternative
Strategies
Social Construction of Social Problems
Social Problems are constructed at many levels
• Culture: cultural images, categories and stereotypes
• Mass media: primary and secondary claims-making
• Public life
• Human services and social control organizations

(Miller & Holstein, 1997)

Types of social problems?
Norm Violations
Norm violations assume that a standard of behavior exists .
People who study norm violations are interested in society's failures like the criminal, the mentally ill, or the
school dropout.
Eitzen et al. (2009:10) contend, however, that norm violations are symptoms of social problems rather that the
problem itself . Deviants, for example, are victims and should not be blamed entirely.
Social Conditions
Eitzen et al. (2009: 11) suggest that a second type of social problem involves conditions that cause psychic and
material suffering for some category of people. The focus is on how society operates and who benefits and who
doesn't benefit under existing social arrangements. “What is the bias of the system?”
• How are society's rewards distributed?
• Do some categories of people suffer due to the way schools are organized
• Are some groups of people put at a disadvantage because of the manner juries are selected?
• Do some categories suffer because of the way health care is delivered?
1-1 Social Problems emerge on the public radar
screen
Statistical Surveillance. Most governments in the
developed world and many international
agencies conduct regular censuses that can spot
potential problems.
Source: neda.gov
Special One-Time Quantitative Studies. Many
problems emerge because an organization or a
government agency undertakes a specific study.
This can be a special interest group, such as
AARP, or a university that considers conducting
such studies a major social role.
Source: https://www.drdf.org.ph/HIVstudy
1-2 Social Problems emerge on the public radar
screen
Individual Insight or Argumentation. Sometimes Vivid Event. Sometimes, some event is so shattering
as to reposition specific problems or bring to the
a social problem is below the radar screen fore whole new classes of problems.
because of the way we think about it. The
situation can change when perceptive and
articulate scholars, social critics, or journalists
look at a situation and, by rethinking and
reframing it, bring it vividly to our attention.

Source: Greenpeace
1-3 Social Problems emerge on the public radar
screen
Personal Tragedy. Sometimes, the simple,
dramatic story of an individual or a family can
have a powerful effect.
Gun Shooting
Uncovered Evidence. Sometimes a social problem
is kept under cover by individuals or
organizations that do not wish to call attention
to it. Investigative reporting or a brave
whistleblower can bring such a critical social
problem to light.
1-4 Social Problems emerge on the public radar
screen
Pseudoevents. Sometimes issues pop up on the
radar screen because activists or aggrieved
parties stage some sort of event or protest that
gets wide coverage.
Inflation in the Philippines
Social Problems
[Watch] Pamilya Ordinaryo (2006)
Pamilya Ordinaryo is a
story about teenage
couple who lives around
the city, and stealing
money for a living. Life
hits them back hard
when their child is
kidnapped.

The film tackled a lot of

social issues from
poverty, drug addiction,
teenage pregnancy and
many more.
How do we resolve social problems?
• Legislation is law which has been promulgated (or "enacted") by a legislature or other
governing body or the process of making it.
• Community action includes a broad range of activities and is sometimes described as ‘social
action' or ‘community engagement’.
Building community and social capacity – helping the community to share knowledge, skills and
ideas.
Community resilience – helping the community to support itself.
Prevention – a focus on early access to services or support, engagement in design, cross-sector
collaboration and partnerships.
Maintaining and creating wealth – for example helping people into employment or developing
community enterprises.
• Social marketing adaptation of commercial marketing technologies. to programs designed to
influence the voluntary behavior of target. audiences to improve their personal welfare and
that of the society of which they are a part. Andreasen
Social Change
What is Social Change? Definition
Social change refers to an alteration in the social structure of a social group or society which,
according to, International Encyclopaedia of Social Science (IESS. 1972 ), are the change in the
nature, social institutions, social behaviours or social relations of a society.
Lundberg, “Social change refers to any modification in established patterns of inter human
relationships and standards of conduct.”
Merrill and Eldredge. “Social change means that large number of persons are engaging in activities
that differ from those which they or their immediate forefathers engaged in some time before.”
Jones. “Social change is a term used to describe variations in, or modifications of, any aspect of social
processes, social patterns, social interaction or social organisation.”
Social Change requires
individuals to ACT.
[Watch] How a refugee think to move forward
SOUFRA follows the
inspirational story of
intrepid social
entrepreneur, Mariam
Shaar – a refugee who
has spent her entire
life in the 69-year-old
Burl El Barajneh
refugee camp south of
Beirut, Lebanon
Factors of Social Change
• Demographic Factors
Changes in population, both in numbers and composition, have a far reaching effect on society. Changes in
the size of population may bring about a change in the economic life of the people.
• Technological Factors
Modern industrial relationships have given birth to companies, corporations, and share market,
multinational companies, banks and the union of industrial workers. This is to say industrial societies are
very complex and distinctly different from the earlier simple societies
• Cultural Factors
Social systems are directly or indirectly the creations of cultural values. Any change in values or belief
systems on the part of social group affects social institutions.
• Political Factors
Law act as an instrument of socio-economic and political change in society and It protects the interests
of the weaker sections of society.
1-1 Theories of Social Change
• Theory of Deterioration
Some thinkers have identified social change with deterioration. According to them, man originally lived in
a perfect state of happiness in a golden age. Subsequently, however, deterioration began to take place with
the result that man reached an age of comparative degeneration. This was the notion in the ancient Orient.
• Cyclic Theory
Another ancient notion of social change found side by side with the afore-mentioned one, is that human
society goes through certain cycles. Looking to the cyclic changes of days and nights and of climates some
sociologists like Spengler believe that society has a predetermined life cycle and has birth, growth,
maturity, and decline.
1-2 Theories of Social Change
• Linear Theory
Some thinkers subscribe to the linear theory of social change. According to them, society gradually moves
to an even higher state of civilization and that it advances in a linear fashion and in the direction of
improvement. Auguste Comte postulated three stages of social change: the Theological, the Metaphysical
and the Positive.
Social Change Model
The Social Change Model of Leadership
Development acts as an attempt to
reframe the developmental experiences
college students are having into three
different domains (individual, group,
and community) and the seven values
associated within the domains that
work in tandem to create positive social
change (Wagner, 2006)
Characteristics of Social Change
• Change is Social
• Universal
• Continuous
• Inevitable
• Temporal
• Degree or rate of change is not uniform
• Social Change may be planned or unplanned
• Social change is multi-causal
• Social change creates chain-reactions
• Prediction is uncertain
Types of Social Change
According to cultural anthropologist David F. Aberle, the four types of social
change include:
• Alternative -are at the individual level and advocate for minor change;
redemptive social movements
• Redemptive -are at the individual level and advocate for radical changes.
• Reformative - occur at a broader group or societal level and advocate for minor
changes
• Revolutionary - a broader group or societal level and advocate for radical
changes.
These different movements are distinguished by how much change they advocate
and whether they target individuals or the entirety of a society.
Development
Definition of Development
Todaro (1981)
Development is not purely an economic phenomenon but rather a multi-
dimensional process involving reorganization and reorientation of entire
economic AND social system
Alternative Interpretations of Development
(Mabogunje)
Development as Economic Growth- too often commodity output as opposed to
people is emphasized-measures of growth in GNP. Note here the persistence of a
dual economy where the export sector contains small number of workers but
draws technology as opposed to traditional sector where most people work and is
dominated by inefficient technology
Development as Modernization- emphasizes process of social change which is
required to produce economic advancement; examines changes in social,
psychological and political processes;
How to develop wealth oriented behavior and values in individuals; profit seeking
rather than subsistence and self sufficiency
Shift from commodity to human approach with investment in education and skill
training
Alternative Interpretations of Development
(Mabogunje)
Development as Distributive Justice- view development as improving basic
needs
Interest in social justice which has raised three issues:
1. Nature of goods and services provided by governments
2. Matter of access of these public goods to different social classes
3. How burden of development can be shared among these classes
Target groups include small farmers, landless, urban under-employed and
unemployed
Theories of Development
Modernization Theory
This refers to the process of change and
evolution that every society goes through
in its transformation from a traditional to
modern society. The history of this theory
is linked to some American social scientists
in the 1950s. There are several versions of
this theory but the most prominent - the
Marxist vs Capitalist, Western and Present
day versions.
Structuralism
This is another development theory that is
focused on the structural issues that
impede the growth of developing countries
economically. The structural
transformation it promotes is to help
create an economy that is self-sustaining.
It can be achieved by ending the over
dependence of developing countries on the
developed economies. It proposes that
developing countries should push for
industrial growth to reduce their
dependency on trade with the developed
world and encourage trade among
themselves.
Theories of Development
Dependency Theory
This theory is seen as a follow up to the
structuralist way of thinking. It also states
that every society goes through its own
peculiar stage of development.
Dependency theorists state that
underdeveloped countries will always be
vulnerable economically except there is a
reduction of their links to the world
market.
The Basic Needs Theory
This was introduced by the International
Labor Organization because the
modernization and structuralism
approaches were not producing results as
it related to poverty alleviation and
correcting the inequalities in developing
countries. Those who speak in favor of this
theory argue that the elimination of
absolute poverty makes it possible to
make people active in the society.
Theories of Development
Neoclassical Theory
This theory originated from its predecessor,
classical economics which was developed in the
18th and 19th centuries. This development
theory became popular in the late 1970s. In
1980, the World Bank supported the
neoclassical theory as against it basic needs
approach. It started becoming popular from
early 1980s.
Recent Theories of Development
- Post development theory
This school of thought questions the notion of
national economic development as a whole.
This theory has its origin from the 1980s and
1990s. Its theorists say that development is
only a thought and has brought about a
hierarchy of developed and undeveloped
countries with the underdeveloped countries
aspiring to be like the developed countries.
Some experts say that development thinking is
dominated by the West. Others argue that the
lifestyle in the West is neither a realistic nor
desirable goal for the population of the world.
Sustainable Development
• Defined as development that is likely to achieve lasting satisfaction of human
needs and improvement of the quality of life and encompasses:
• Help for the very poorest who are left with no option but to destroy their
environment to survive
• Idea of self-reliant development with natural resource constraints
• Cost effective development using different economic criteria to the traditional –
i.e. development should not degrade environment
• Important issues of health control, appropriate technologies, food self-reliance,
clean water and shelter for all
• People centered activities are necessary- human beings are the resources in the
concept
Sustainable Development
[Resources]
• https://www.unicef.org/cbsc/files/Strategic_Communication_for_Behaviour_and_Social_Change.pdf
• Andreasen, Alan R. 2006. Social Marketing in the 21st Century. Sage Publications. pp3-29
• Velasco, et. al. 1999. DEVC208 Module (Social Marketing and Social Mobilization for Development) pp1-9. Available as pdf in the course
site
• http://main.socprobs.net/Week_1.htm
• http://open.lib.umn.edu/socialproblems/chapter/1-1-what-is-a-social-problem/
• https://www.slideshare.net/Madrisa/social-constr-fam-violence
• http://bangabasi.org/pdf/repositories/social-chang-pathabo.pdf
• http://www.sociologydiscussion.com/sociology/theories-of-social-change-meaning-nature-and-processes/2364
• https://thinkingraceblog.wordpress.com/2017/05/10/problematizing-the-social-change-model-of-leadership-development/
• https://www.slideshare.net/rajkishorkumawat526/social-change-53747012
• https://www.local.gov.uk/our-support/guidance-and-resources/community-action/community-action-overview/what-community-action
• http://www.personalitydevelopmenttip.com/What-are-the-Theories-of-Development
• https://www.adb.org/news/videos/more-seawall-building-resilience-through-community-driven-development-philippines
 Mike Antolin
Master of Development Communication
University of the Philippines Open University
mcantolin1@up.edu.ph