Collective Behavior (Ch. 21)

Collective Behavior• Social forces arising out

of the interactions of large numbers of people and groups

• Looks at the broader socio-cultural environments

• Economic structures• Stratification orders• Technological systems

of communication/transportation

• Family processes• Demographics• Value systems

Why participate?• Felt sense of exhilaration

and power of their unity in numbers

• “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts…”

• http://www.crazyfads.com

Examples of Collective Behavior• The “wave” at a

sporting event

• Religious revivals

• Public religious rituals

• War of the Worlds broadcast (1938)–Collective hysteria

• Windshield-pitting incident in WA (April 1954)–Mass delusion

Early Observations of Collective Behavior

Charles Mackay (British)

• Observed country folks doing things completely out of the ordinary–People had a herd

mentality

Gustave LeBon (French)

• People felt anonymous in crowds, thus felt less accountable for what they do–Development of the

collective mind, people are swept up by almost any suggestion

Early Observations of Collective Behavior

Robert Park (American)

• Collective impulse is transmitted from one person to another in a crowd

• Same thing as collective mind

Herbert Blumer (American

• Identified 5 stages of an acting crowd– Excited group moving

towards a goal– Still dominates police

manuals on crowd behavior

Blumer’s Model of an Acting Crowd• Tension/unrest–Background condition of tension/unrest people

become apprehensive vulnerable to rumors/suggestions

• Exciting event– Event so startling that people become

preoccupied with it

Blumer’s Model of an Acting Crowd• Milling–People standing/walking around, talking about

the event–Pick up cues of the “right” way of thinking/feeling later reinforced in the group

• Common object of attention–Group’s focus on a particular part of the event,

which sometimes can be untrue or highly exaggerated

Blumer’s Model of an Acting Crowd• Common impulses–Group members feel they are in agreement

w/each other on what should be done–Agreement stimulated by social contagion

Social Movements:

The Occupy Movement

Occupy Movement – Beliefs• Solidarity –

http://www.nycga.net/resources/principles-of-solidarity/

• Autonomy – http://www.nycga.net/resources/statement-of-autonomy/

• Occupation – http://www.nycga.net/resources/declaration/

• Right to Occupy Space – http://occupywallst.org/article/everyone-has-right-occupy-space-safely/

Occupy Timeline• 9/17/2011–Group organized in Zucotti Park, Manhattan–Known as Occupy Wall Street

• 10/9/11–Had Occupy locations in 95 cities across 92

countries, and 600+ communities in the U.S.• 1/22/12–OccupyTogether lists 2,818 Occupy-communities

around the world

Occupy Videos• Washington DC –

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6VmmKrFkaY

• New York City – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpq-moDIkl8

• London – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1GvfRjimMT8

Occupy Videos/Hand Signs• Occupy Protocol on

taking care of Nature’s calls – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGC2R428eO4

We Are the 99%• Political slogan used by

Occupy protesters– Refers to vast

concentration of wealth by the top 1% of income earners in U.S.

– Suggest that the 99% are paying the price for the mistakes of the 1%

• 1% = $500,000+/yr. in yearly income

We Are the 99% – True or False? • According to the CBO, b/w 1979-2007– Incomes of U.S.’ top 1% grew by 275%– Incomes of U.S.’ middle 60% grew by 40%

• 2007–Richest 1% of U.S. owned 34.6% of total wealth in

U.S.–Next 19% owned 50.5%

Occupy Movement Goals• Est. a Robin Hood tax– Taxes on range of financial transactions–Affect:• Individual investors• Banks• Hedge funds• Other financial institutions

• Attempt to raise $$$ for international development, protecting the environment, and public services

Occupy Movement Goals• End corrupting influence of money on politics– Tighten banking industry regulations–Ban high-frequency trading–Arrest all “financial fraudsters” responsible for

the 2008 crash– Form a presidential commission to

investigate/prosecute corruption in politics

Occupy Movement Goals• More/better jobs

• More equal distribution of income

• Bank reform

• Reduce influence of corporations on politics

Impacts on the U.S.?• Shift in national dialogue of national debt to the

economic problems many ordinary Americans face–Unemployment–Personal/college student debt–Homelessness– Income inequality

• Others see the movement as disruptive and a waste of time