SOCIAL
CHANGE
Social change refers to the alteration of social interactions,
institutions, stratification systems, and elements of culture
over time.
It could be manifested in the rise and fall of civilizations,
changes in the function of institutions, changes in the
statuses and roles of people in society, changes in the
structure and size of families, and so on
CHARACTERISTICS
1. It is ubiquitous but is uneven due to the phenomenon of
culture lag. (adapt)
2. It is often creates controversy and conflict. (past)
3. It is value-neutral (neither good nor bad)
4. The duration of social change can either be rapid or gradual
5. The onset and consequences of social change are often
unseen
Social change is brought about by different factors which
could be internal or external
Internal factors are differences that occur in the norms,
values, and beliefs of people from different ages, gender,
social class, psychosocial characteristics, ethnicity, and race
External factors which are beyond human control, could be
demographic, cultural, political, and economic.
External Factors
1. Demographic factors – these refers to changes that occur
in the number and composition of people in the community
brought about by variations in fertility, mortality, and
migration rates.
2. Cultural factors – these refers to changes that occur in the
elements of culture (symbols and language, norms, values
and beliefs, rituals, and artifacts) due to cultural diffusion,
fission, and convergence.
CULTURAL DIFFUSION - refers to the spread of culture from
one region to the other. (KPOP phenomena in PH)
CULTURAL FISSION – breaking up of culture into two or more
independent units from a cultural origin (splitting of one tribe)
CULTURAL CONVERGENCE – fusion of two or more cultures
into a new one (religion)
External Factors
3. Political factors – these refer to changes that occur in
political structure and system of society due to either reformist
or radical approaches.
REFORMIST – lobbying, creating and implementing new laws,
replacing persons in authority through elections, or creating
new spheres of influence to balance or shift centers of power
RADICAL – revolutions (replacing people of authority by
overthrowing them from their position against their will) or war
(fighting to death to compete over resources and/or putting a
certain ideology into place)
External Factors
4. Economic factors – these refer to changes that occur in the
economic structure and system of society due to modernization
-the main element in modernization is industrialization
-industrialization then ushers urbanization
-the combination of industrialization and urbanization bring
forth secularization, where religion significantly loses social and
cultural significance over the lives of people
Theories on Social Change
1. Evolutionary
communities are seen to go through a series of linear
stages from simple to complex, all geared toward a higher
and more advanced stage of existence.
Theories on Social Change
2. Cyclical
communities undergo a cycle of birth, maturity, decline,
and death, and that they undergo stages of ideational,
idealistic, and sensate culture
ideational stage, the community appeals to the mind and
spirit in the expression of art, religion, literature, and
ethics
idealistic stage, there is a balance of faith, reason, and
science as the source of truth
Theories on Social Change
sensate stage, dominated by hedonism, the primacy of
central desires and materialistic values
3. Functional
communities always operate on equilibrium where the
social, cultural, political, and economic structures of the
community produce order, stability, and productivity
Theories on Social Change
4. Conflict
explains that changes take place due to conflicts that
occur in societies
conflict arises because of unequal relations among people
on the basis of class, gender, age, race, and ethnicity
Theories on Social Change
5. Symbolic Interactionism
argues that people in society continuously interact with
one another, and it is through this interaction that they are
able to construct and alter existing social, cultural,
political, and economic structures
SOCIAL
JUSTICE
We usually mention social justice when there is oppression
and marginalization, or when people are being abused,
violated, or senselessly hurt
But what does social justice mean?
Social justice refers to the overall equality and fairness in:
a. the treatment of fellow human beings regardless of race,
sex, gender, social class, age, dis/ability, religion, political
affiliation, or other characteristics of background or group
membership;
b. the access and allocation of community resources and
goods such as basic needs (food, income, shelter); and
c. the giving of opportunity structures and life chances so
that people can live meaningful lives and achieve well-
being
Five Key Areas in which Social Justice
Address
1. Poverty
“a human condition characterized by the sustained or
chronic deprivation of the resources, capabilities, choices,
security and power necessary for the enjoyment of an
adequate standard of living and other civil, cultural,
economic, political, and social rights” UN (2001)
MAJOR APPROACHES IN UNDERSTANDING POVERTY:
a. Subsistence minimum – poverty here is seen either as
income-poverty or consumption-poverty
b. Capability – poverty here is seen as the absence or
inadequate realization of certain basic freedoms
c. Social exclusion – poverty is seen as the denial of
human rights and as the condition in which various
international human rights convention are not fulfilled and
states are not held accountable in safeguarding the rights
of their citizens
MAJOR APPROACHES IN UNDERSTANDING POVERTY:
d. Multidimensional – poverty in this viewpoint is seen to
be made up of several factors that constitute poor people’s
experience of deprivation such as poor health, lack of
education, and inadequate living standard
DIMENSIONS OF POVERTY:
a. Cultural – culture plays a significant part on why Filipinos
remain poor
b. Economic – the Philippines is characterized by low
economic growth due to its failure to develop the agricultural
sector
c. Political – the Philippines is characterized by weak social
institutions due to poor governance
DIMENSIONS OF POVERTY:
d. Social – the Philippines is characterized by high
inequality
e. Environmental – the Philippines is prone to disasters and
vulnerable to climate change, and both circumstances have
proven of wiping out or undoing any economic gains made
by the country
Five Key Areas in which Social Justice
Address
2. Unjust Forms of Social Inequalities
the denial of human rights of individuals based on the
perception of their inferiority by those with more power,
wealth, and prestige
The denial of human rights is expressed in the following
forms of discrimination and social exclusion:
1. Classism – refers to the systematic oppression of
subordinated groups to the advantage of dominant
groups on the basis of social class
Systematic oppression here includes individual attitudes,
behaviors, policies, and practices that are set up to benefit
those in the upper class at the expense of those in the lower
class.
2. Racism – refers to the systematic oppression on the
basis of race and ethnicity.
Systematic oppression a host of practices, beliefs, and
social relations that turn humans into stereotyped objects,
which reproduced a racial stratification and racially
structured society.
3. Sexism – is the belief and practice that one’s sex is
innately superior to the other.
Sexism views males as more superior to females on the
basis that women are physically weak, emotionally unstable,
and intellectually inferior.
4. Gender bias – refers to systematic oppression of any sex –
including men, intersexual, and transgender
5. Ageism – pertains to prejudice and discrimination based on
differences in age.
6. Disability bias – refers to the unequal treatment and systematic
oppression of a group of persons based on their physical or mental
impairments or challenges
7. Ideological bias – refers to the intense commitment to certain
religious, political, or philosophical ideas that results to the
oppressive dismissal of other ideas
Five Key Areas in which Social Justice
Address
3. Predatory Capitalism
refers to the unregulated actions and strategies of
corporations to make profit at whatever cause – that is,
whenever profit-making conflicts with that of the public
interest, the former is given the first priority
Five Key Areas in which Social Justice
Address
4. Occupational Injustice
occurs in situations when people are exploited, barred,
confined, restricted, segregated, prohibited, undeveloped,
disrupted, and/or alienated from meaningful occupations
or have preferred occupations imposed upon them,
thereby limiting the achievement of their optimum health,
quality of life, and life satisfaction
There are several terms and constructs related to occupational
injustice. These terms are the following:
1. Occupational alienation – prolonged experiences of
disconnectedness, isolation, lack of identity, and emptiness due
to lack of access to resources and opportunity structures that
could enrich one’s life
2. Occupational apartheid – the segregation of groups of people
through the restriction of denial of access to dignified and
meaningful participation in occupations of daily life on the basis
of race, color, disability, national origin, age, gender, sexual
preference, religion, political beliefs, status in society, and others
3. Occupational deprivation – external factors that stand outside
the immediate control of the individual, which prevents him or her
from engaging in meaningful occupations
4. Occupational imbalance – condition in which an individual is
underemployed, has too little to do, or is left out of occupations that
can enrich one’s lives or vise versa
5. Occupational marginalization – process of unjustly limiting or
excluding people to participate in certain occupations due to
situations where people are stigmatized by gender, illness, or
disability
Five Key Areas in which Social Justice
Address
5. Climate Change Injustice
condition in which those who are least responsible for
climate change bear the greatest brunt or negative
impacts
