Social Movements

Social movements are a type of group action. While technology,environment factors, racial inequality and many social component can prompt social change. Only when members of a society organize into social movements does true social change occur. The phrase social movements refers to collective activities designed to bring about or resist primary changes in an existing society or group.

Relative deprivation theory

When members of a society become dissatisfied or frustrated with their social, economic, and political situation, they yearn for changes. Social scientists have long noted that the actual conditions that people live under may not be at fault, but people's perceptions of their conditions are. Relative deprivation refers to the negative perception that differences exist between wants and actualities. In other words, people may not actually be deprived when they believe they are. A relatively deprived group is disgruntled because they feel less entitled or privileged than a particular reference group. For example, a middle class family may feel relatively deprived when they compare their house to that of their upper class physician.

The relative deprivation theory takes criticism for several reason. First, some sociologists say that feelings of deprivation do not necessarily prompt people into acting. Nor must people feel deprived before acting. Second, this theory does not address why perceptions of personal or group deprivation cause some people to reform society, and why other perceptions do not.