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What movements belong to mass social movements. Psychology of mass movements. Stages of a social movement

Represent social movements. According to the definition of D. Della Porta and M. Diani, social movements are “informal networks based on shared values ​​and solidarity by all their participants, mobilizing their participants about conflict issues through the regular use of various forms of protest.”

Social movements are a non-institutional type of collective action, and accordingly they should not be confused with social institutions. Social institutions are stable and stable formations, but social movements have an indefinite time cycle, they are unstable, and under some conditions they easily disintegrate. Social institutions are designed to maintain a system of social relations, social order, and social movements do not have a stable institutional status; most members of society treat them with indifference, and some even with hostility.

Social movements are a special type of social process. All social movements begin with a feeling of dissatisfaction with the existing social order. Objective events and situations create the conditions for understanding the injustice of the existing state of affairs. People see that the authorities are not taking measures to change the situation. At the same time, there are certain standards, norms, knowledge of how it should be. Then people unite into a social movement.

In modern society we can distinguish various social movements: youth, feminist, political, revolutionary, religious, etc. A social movement may not be structurally formalized, it may not have a fixed membership. This can be a spontaneous short-term movement or a socio-political movement with a high degree of organization and a significant duration of activity (political parties are born from them).

Let us consider such social movements as expressive, utopian, revolutionary, reformist.

Expressive movements

Participants in such movements, with the help of special rituals, dances, and games, create a mystical reality in order to almost completely separate themselves from the imperfect life of society. These include the mysteries of Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, Persia and India. Nowadays, expressive movements are most clearly manifested among young people: in associations of rockers, punks, goths, emo, bikers, etc. with their attempts to create their own subculture. As a rule, growing up, young people - participants in these movements - get a profession, work, start a family, children, and eventually become ordinary people.

Expressive movements also include various kinds of monarchical associations in Russia and movements of war veterans. The common basis in such associations is the traditions of the past, the real or imagined exploits of ancestors, the desire to idealize old customs and style of behavior. Usually these harmless associations are busy with memories and the creation of memoirs, but under certain conditions they can induce a previously passive population to take action and can become an intermediate link between non-political and active political movements. In the process of ethnic conflicts they can play an extremely negative role.

Utopian movements

Already in antiquity, Plato tried to describe the future perfect society in his dialogue “The Republic”. However, the philosopher’s attempts to create such a society were unsuccessful. The movements of the first Christians, which were created on the basis of ideas of universal equality, turned out to be more resilient, since their members did not strive for personal happiness and material well-being, but wanted to create ideal relationships.

Secular “perfect” societies began to appear on earth since the English humanist Thomas More wrote his famous book “Utopia” in 1516 (the word “utopia” (Greek) can be understood both as “a place that does not exist” and as "blessed country") Utopian movements arose as attempts to create an ideal social system on earth with good, humane people and fair social relations. The Munster Commune (1534), the communes of Robert Owen (1817), the phalanx of Charles Fourier (1818) and many other utopian organizations quickly disintegrated for many reasons, and primarily due to the underestimation of the natural qualities of man - the desire to achieve well-being in life, the desire to realize one’s abilities , work and receive adequate remuneration for it.

However, the desire of people to change the conditions in which they live should not be underestimated. This is especially true of groups whose members consider existing relations to be unfair and therefore seek to radically change their social position.

Revolutionary movement

Revolution- this is an unexpected, rapid, often violent, radical change in the social system, structure and functions of the main social institutions. Revolution should be distinguished from apical coup.“Palace” coups are carried out by people at the helm of government, they leave unchanged

social institutions and the system of power in society, replacing, as a rule, only the top officials of the state.

Typically, a revolutionary movement develops gradually in an atmosphere of general social dissatisfaction. The following typical stages of development of revolutionary movements are distinguished:

  • accumulation of social dissatisfaction over a number of years;
  • the emergence of motives for active action and rebellion;
  • a revolutionary explosion caused by the vacillations and weakness of the ruling elite;
  • access to active positions of radicals who capture
  • power and destroy the opposition; o the period of the terror regime;
  • a return to a calm state, stable power and some samples of the previous pre-revolutionary life.

It was according to this scenario that all the most significant revolutions took place.

Reform movement

Reforms are carried out with the aim of correcting the defects of the existing social order, in contrast to a revolution, the goal of which is to destroy the entire social system and create a fundamentally new social order, radically different from the previous one. Historical experience shows that timely necessary reforms often prevent revolution if the basis for social reforms are the interests of the population. Where totalitarian or authoritarian rule blocks the movement of reform, the only way to eliminate the shortcomings of the social system is a revolutionary movement. In traditionally democratic countries, for example Sweden, Belgium, Denmark, radical movements have few supporters, while in totalitarian regimes, repressive policies constantly provoke revolutionary movements and unrest.

Stages of a social movement

In any social movement, with all the features determined by the specifics of the country, region, people, four identical stages are distinguished: initial anxiety, excitement, formalization, subsequent institutionalization.

Worry stage is associated with the emergence of uncertainty among the population about the future, a sense of social injustice, and a breakdown in the system of values ​​and habitual norms of behavior. Thus, in Russia, after the events of August 1991 and the official introduction of market mechanisms, millions of people found themselves in an unusual situation: without work, without a means of subsistence, without the ability to assess the situation within the framework of traditional ideology, when established norms of morality and law began to change. values. This has led to the emergence of strong social anxiety among a significant part of the population and creates the preconditions for the formation of various social movements.

Excitation stage occurs if, at the stage of anxiety, people begin to associate the deterioration of their condition with real social processes to such an extent that they have a need for active action. Supporters of the movement gather together to discuss the current situation. At spontaneous rallies, speeches are made, speakers are put forward who are better than others at articulating the problems that concern everyone, agitators and, finally, leaders with ideological organizational talent who outline the strategy and goals of the struggle and turn the masses of the dissatisfied into an effective social movement. The excitement stage is very dynamic and quickly ends either with active actions or with people losing all interest in this movement.

A social movement that attempts to bring about fundamental change in society is usually organized in some way. If the enthusiasm of the excited masses is not ordered and directed towards achieving certain goals, spontaneous street riots begin. The behavior of an excited crowd is unpredictable and results in destruction: people set fire to cars, overturn buses, throw stones at police, and shout threats. This is how football fans sometimes behave, provoking their opponents. In this case, the excitement usually passes quickly and there can be no talk of any organized and long-term movement.

On formalization stage the movement takes shape (structuring, registration, etc.), ideologists appear to provide its theoretical justification and formulate clear and precise goals and objectives. Through agitators, the population is explained the reasons for the current situation and the prospects of the movement itself. At this stage, the excited masses turn into disciplined representatives of the movement, who have a more or less real goal.

On stage of institutionalization the social movement is given completeness and certainty. The movement develops certain cultural patterns with a developed ideology, management structure, and its own symbols.

Social movements that achieve their goals, such as gaining access to government power, transform into social institutions or organizations. Many movements fall apart under the influence of external conditions and internal weaknesses.

Reasons for the emergence of social movements

Why does one society experience social movements, revolutionary activity, and unrest, while another society lives without significant upheaval and conflict, although there are also rich and poor, rulers and ruled? Apparently, there is no clear answer to this question, since many factors are at work, including civilizational ones.

In economically developed, democratically structured societies, the majority of the population feels a sense of relative security and stability, is indifferent to changes in public life, and does not want to join radical social movements, support them, much less participate in them.

Elements of social disorganization and a state of anomie are more characteristic of changing, unstable societies.

If in traditional societies human needs are kept at a fairly low level, then with the development of civilization the freedom of the individual from traditions, collective mores and prejudices, the possibility of personal choice of activities and methods of action expands sharply, but at the same time a state of uncertainty arises, accompanied by the absence of firm life goals, norms and models behavior. This puts people in an ambivalent social position, weakens connections with a specific group and with the whole society, which leads to an increase in cases of deviant behavior. Anomie reaches particular severity in conditions of a free market, economic crises and unexpected changes in socio-political constant factors.

The American sociologist R. Merton noticed some basic socio-psychological traits in members of such unstable societies. In particular, they believe that those who govern the state are indifferent to the wishes and aspirations of its ordinary members. The average citizen feels that he cannot achieve his basic goals in a society that he sees as unpredictable and disorderly. He has a growing conviction that it is impossible to count on any social and psychological support from the institutions of a given society. A complex of feelings and motives of this kind can be considered a modern version of anomie.

In these cases, people have a mindset for social change. These attitudes become the basis for the formation of movements that cause counter-movements, identical in direction, but opposite in values. Movements and counter-movements always coexist where groups with different interests and goals are represented.

The most effective form of preventing the clash of social movements with opposing goals is to eliminate its causes at different levels.

At the general social level, we are talking about identifying and eliminating economic, social and political factors that disorganize public and state life. Distortions in the economy, gaps in the level and quality of life of large groups and segments of the population, political instability, disorganization and ineffectiveness of the management system are a constant source of large and small, internal and external conflicts. To prevent the emergence of radical movements, it is necessary to consistently pursue social, economic, and cultural policies in the interests of the entire society, strengthen law and order and legality, and help improve the spiritual culture of people. These measures are a general “prevention” of any socially negative phenomena in society, including conflict situations. Restoring and strengthening the rule of law, eliminating the “subculture of violence” characteristic of many segments of the population, everything that can help maintain normal business relations between people, strengthen their mutual trust and respect, prevents the emergence of radical and extremist movements, and if they have already formed, contributes softening their positions to a level acceptable to society.

Thus, social movements can be defined as a set of protest actions aimed at supporting social change, “a collective attempt to realize common interests or achieve a common goal through collective action outside the framework of established institutions” (E. Giddens). Expressive, utopian, revolutionary and reform social movements played an important role in the development of society. Practice shows that, having achieved their goal, social movements cease to exist as movements proper and are transformed into institutions and organizations.

Social movements are a special class of social phenomena, representing a fairly organized unity of people who set themselves a specific goal, usually associated with some change in social reality. Social movements have different level :

    wide movements with global goals(fight for peace, for environmental protection, etc.),

    local movements, which are limited either to a territory or a certain social group (for the equality of women, for the rights of sexual minorities, etc.)

    movement With pragmatic goals in a very limited region (for the removal of any member of the administration).

Common features all levels of social movements:

      It is based on a certain public opinion, which, as it were, prepares a social movement, although subsequently it itself is formed and strengthened as the movement develops.

      Any social movement has as its goal a change in the situation depending on its level: either in society as a whole, or in the region.

      During the organization of the movement, its program is formulated, with varying degrees of elaboration and clarity.

      The movement is aware of the means that can be used to achieve its goals, for example, whether violence is acceptable as one of the means.

      Every social movement is realized to one degree or another in various manifestations of mass behavior, including demonstrations, rallies, congresses, etc.

Three issues are important: mechanisms for joining the movement, the ratio of majority and minority opinions, and characteristics of leaders.

1.Mechanisms for joining the movement can be explained through an analysis of the participants' motives. They are divided into fundamental, which are determined by the conditions of existence of a particular social group, its status, and momentary, which are generated by a problematic situation, a social incident, a new political act. They are more justified by purely emotional reactions to what is happening in society or a group. The thoroughness and “strength” of the movement and the forecast for the successful fulfillment of goals depend on the relationship between fundamental and momentary motives.

Recruitment of movement supporters is carried out in various ways: in local movements it can also be recruitment “on the street”, when a collection of signatures is organized in favor of some action. In higher-level movements, recruitment occurs in those groups in which the initiative was born. Thus, in the civil rights movement, the initiators can be people who have suffered illegally or been subjected to repression. In modern literature, two theories have been proposed to explain the reasons for an individual’s joining a social movement.

Relative deprivation theory states that a person feels the need to achieve a goal not in the case when he is absolutely deprived of some good, right, value, but in the case when he is relatively deprived of it. In other words, this need is formed by comparing one’s position (or the position of one’s group) with the position of others.

Theory resource mobilization emphasizes the more “psychological” reasons for joining the movement. It is argued here that a person is guided by the need to identify to a greater degree with the group, to feel part of it, thereby feeling his strength, and mobilizing resources.

2. Correlation between the positions of the majority and the minority in any mass movement, including social movement. Taking into account the heterogeneity of social movements, the unification of representatives of different social groups in them, as well as specific forms of action (high emotional intensity, the presence of contradictory information), it can be assumed that in any social movement the problem of identifying “dissenters”, decisive ones, etc. is relevant. In other words, the movement is easily designated as a minority. Not taking his position into account can weaken the movement. Therefore, there is a need for dialogue to ensure minority rights.

Characteristics of the conditions under which a minority can count on influence in the movement: a) consistent style of behavior. This means ensuring consistency in two “sections”: b) in synchrony(unanimity of participants at any given moment) and c) diachrony(stability of the position and behavior of minority members over time). Only under such conditions can negotiations between the minority and the majority (and this is inevitable in any movement) be successful; d) it is also necessary to study the style negotiations: the ability to reach a compromise, remove excessive categoricalness, readiness to move along the path of finding a productive solution.

3. Problem of the leader or leaders. It is clear that a leader of such a specific type of mass behavior must have special traits. Along with the fact that it must most fully express and defend the goals accepted by the participants, it must also, purely outwardly, appeal to a fairly large mass of people. The image of the leader of a social movement should be the subject of his daily attention. As a rule, the strength of the leader's position and authority largely ensures the success of the movement. These same qualities of a leader also help to keep the movement within the accepted framework of behavior, which does not allow for easy changes in the chosen tactics and strategy of action.

Expressive movements arise within a limited social system that cannot be transformed in any way and from which it is impossible to escape. Individuals, changing their own attitude towards such an unattractive reality, adapt to it through various forms of emotional expression (dancing, art, music, rituals, etc.). Expressive movements originated in ancient times and represented various mysteries in Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, Persia, and India. Individuals participated in complex rites and rituals to distract themselves from the imperfect structure of society. Today, expressional movements can be observed among young people in the subcultures they created (hippies, rockers, punks, etc.). Expressive movements are often associated with belief in a better past life, i.e. they turn to the exploits and glory of past generations, revive the symbolism and way of life of their ancestors. Examples include veterans' movements and monarchist social movements. However, this kind of movement is passive in nature and can have both a positive effect (promote reforms) and a negative effect (can lead to uprisings). The ability of expressive movements to idealize the past, comparing it with the present, can lead to the fact that such movements become an intermediate link between non-political and active political movements.

Utopian movements proclaim utopian ideas. After the work of Thomas More, the word "utopia" came to mean an ideal society, a society of perfection that is only possible in our fantasies. But Thomas More was not the only one who was involved in creating a model of an ideal society. In addition to him, Plato dealt with this problem in ancient times (“The Ideal State”, “Republic”), utopian ideas gained great popularity in the 18th-19th centuries, and in our time the American psychologist B. Skinner made a great contribution. The first utopian movements were religious movements and sects that proclaimed the idea of ​​equality and following the will of God. Worldly communities, followers of utopian ideas, proclaimed the image of a kind, cooperative, altruistic person, sweeping aside the idea of ​​a person's personal happiness into the background, thus, their existence was short-lived, despite the eternal ideals of perfection. An example is the utopian movements proclaiming social equality under capitalism.

Reform movements are movements that aim to change certain areas and the structure of society. It is important to distinguish reforms from modernization. If the reform is partial and implies a change in any particular aspect of life, then modernization involves the complete destruction and construction of a completely new system, i.e. complete transformation of social life. For such a phenomenon as a reform movement to arise, two conditions are necessary:

1) It is necessary to have a positive attitude towards order in the community in question and focus on certain negative aspects of public life;

2) Having the opportunity to express your opinion and actively act in support or against a certain reform.

It is not difficult to guess that reform movements usually arise in democratic societies where there are the necessary conditions for freedom, and they cannot develop under totalitarian conditions. Examples of such movements can be abolitionist movements (for the abolition of certain laws), feminist movements (for gender equality), prohibition movements (banning pornography, the construction of nuclear power plants, etc.). At present, society is not ready to fully accept such movements, but they are already getting used to them, and civic consciousness is gradually being formed.

Revolutionary movements have as their goal the overthrow of the existing social system and its complete destruction, followed by the creation of a new social order, significantly different from the previously existing one. The meaning of the word “revolution” should be clarified. Revolution in this case should be understood as “an unexpected, rapid, usually violent complete change in the social system, structure and functions of many basic social institutions.” Revolutions are not the same as state or palace coups. The main difference is that palace or coups d'état leave social institutions and the system of power in society unchanged, replacing only the people in power. The concept of “revolution” also has a different meaning, for example, when talking about gradual large-scale changes (industrial revolution, scientific and technological revolution, sexual revolution). If reform movements try to change only some of the shortcomings of an existing system, then revolutionary movements will not take any action, explaining that such a social system does not deserve to be saved. Using the example of history, one can clearly see that revolutionary movements often arise in societies where revolution is the only way out of the current authoritarian situation and the only means of eliminating the imperfections of the social system, and in democratic societies the development of revolutionary movements is minimal, since reforms push back the revolution. As Frolov writes: “it is no coincidence that communist movements are not developed in such traditionally democratic countries as Sweden, Switzerland, Belgium or Denmark, and are highly developed in those countries where repressive policies are carried out to one degree or another or the government is only considered democratic and its activities ineffective in carrying out social reforms.” American scientists L. Edward and K. Brinton (school of natural history), also involved in the study of revolutionary movements, identified their most typical stages of successful development:

1) accumulation of deep social anxiety and dissatisfaction over a number of years;

2) the inability of intellectuals to successfully criticize the existing situation in a way that the bulk of the population understands them;

3) the emergence of an impulse to take active action, to revolt against a social myth or belief system that justifies this impulse;

4) a revolutionary explosion caused by the vacillations and weakness of the ruling elite;

5) the period of rule by moderates, which soon boils down to attempts to control various groups of revolutionaries or to concessions in order to extinguish outbursts of passions among the people;

6) the emergence of active positions of extremists and radicals who seize power and destroy all opposition;

7) period of the terror regime;

8) a return to a calm state, stable power and to some examples of the previous pre-revolutionary life.

It should be noted once again that it is quite difficult to determine whether a given social movement is reformist or revolutionary in nature, since it can include both active members and radicals, and passive reformers.

Resistance movements are the efforts and actions of certain social groups and communities aimed against the complete destruction of the transformations already taking place. Such movements arise among those dissatisfied with the too rapid progress of the process and, as a rule, are always accompanied by reform and revolutionary movements. For example, when Peter I carried out reforms in Russia, opposition to these reforms arose. Typically, resistance movements include individuals who, during the reform process, will lose their privileges or will have no place at all and no social position in the reformed structure of society.

In addition to this typology, the following types of social movements are distinguished:

Depending on the type of change: 1) Progressive or innovative. Such movements strive to introduce various innovations into the life of society. These could be new institutions, laws, ways of life, religious views, etc. Examples of such social movements can be republican, socialist movements, and feminist movements. 2) Conservative or retroactive. This type of movement aims to return to a previously existing way of life. For example, various environmental movements, monarchical movements, etc.

Depending on the attitude towards the goals of change: 1) Aimed at changing social structures. Such movements may transform into or join political parties and organizations, but most of them remain outside the reformist political system. 2) Aimed at personality changes. Examples of such movements are religious and sectarian movements.

Depending on the method of work: 1) Peaceful (non-violent) - use peaceful means to achieve their goals. 2) Violent - movements that use methods of armed struggle.

Depending on the area of ​​distribution: 1) Global movements with global goals, for example, internationals, movements of world social forms, etc. 2) Local movements that have a local level, i.e. tasks of a regional scale. 3) Multi-level movements, including and combining the solution of problems at all levels (local, regional, national and international).

Now let's briefly look at the life cycles of social groups. There are no identical social groups that go through the same stages of development, but there are four stages common to all: restlessness, excitement, formalization and institutionalization. At the first stage, mass uncertainty about the future appears, public discontent accumulates, at the second, all this discontent is focused on certain problems and all the causes of failure are identified with certain real objects. At the third stage, a number of agitators and figures appear who systematize the activity and ideology of the movement. At the fourth stage, the movements are practically established in the organization, i.e. have their own rules, codes, symbols, etc. There is also a fifth stage - the stage of the collapse of the movement, however, this opinion is not shared by all sociologists, because in reality, for many social movements this is not the final stage. We must not forget that a social movement can cease to exist at any stage. Depending on various factors (internal, external, as a result of achieving their own goals), movements can disintegrate into smaller organizations or disappear altogether.

How beneficial or harmful are social movements for society? From everything we have considered, we can conclude that this question is incorrect. First of all, social movements are one of the ways to change society. The work done allows us to more fully and deeply understand the nature of social processes and social movements and their role in the life of society.

Terminological apparatus of the concept of social movement

Definition 1

Social movement is an association and set of groups and collective actions created to support social change.

One can also view a social movement as a conflictual collective action in which opposing, antagonistic groups (classes) oppose each other. Social movements must be distinguished from social institutions.

Definition 2

Social institutions are relatively stable social formations, and social movements are dynamic new formations with uncertain life cycles, dynamic, changeable, and have.

The typology of social movements highlights their most common, essential features.

Types and types of social movements

    Political movements. In cases where mass actions are aimed at conquering, strengthening or changing political power, a political regime, government bodies and are expressed in demands addressed to the authorities - political social movements. Political movements are classified according to the following parameters:

    • By composition (peasant, proletarian, feminist)
    • By motivation (religious, sociocultural)
    • By purpose (resistance movement, national liberation movements)
    • According to the characteristics of the strategy (revolutionary, reformist)
    • By tactics of action (extremist, civil).

  1. Expressive movements. Mass movements associated with dissatisfaction with the existing social reality consider it vicious or simply ugly. At the same time, people strive to change reality and their attitude towards it with the help of dreams, visions, rituals, any norms and cultural models that are not acceptable in a given society. These groups of people find emotional relief in various forms of emotional expression, which makes their daily life acceptable and tolerable. This is precisely the nature of the mysteries - mass theatrical, ritual, full of religious content actions of the inhabitants of Ancient Egypt, Greece, Persia, and India. In modern conditions, expressive movements are most common and pronounced among young people. Manifestations of such processes are the movements of hippies, rockers and other countercultures and subcultures.

    Note 1

    Revolutionary movements have the goal of destroying the existing social system, throwing off its inherent social order and establishing a new one.

    Reform movements. Mass political action aimed at relative change and improvement of the existing social system through reforms. This is possible if the participants in these movements have a positive attitude towards the existing social order. In addition, they must have institutional (that is, those allowed by the state and legislation) opportunities to express their thoughts and take actions in support of reforms.

    Opposition movements. The reaction of society, which is caused by the dissatisfaction of certain groups of people with the social changes that are taking place. Rejection is usually caused by social change happening too quickly or too slowly, inconsistently. They arise after revolutionary or reformist ones and represent opposition to them. Often these movements are joined by representatives of former elites who have not found a worthy place in the new social system, as well as people who have lost their rights and privileges as a result of reforms.

    Environmental movements. Aimed at protecting natural resources. Proponents of these movements argue that trends in society cannot be fully understood outside of an ecological perspective.

    Youth movements. Actually, by the beginning of the twentieth century. young people did not belong to the socially mature category of citizens; due to traditions and norms of social life, they were dependent on their parents financially and morally. Therefore, youth social movements came into fashion, which were aimed at demonstrating civic positions, changing cultural phenomena, the emergence of subcultures, and rejuvenating politics.

    Feminist (women's) movements and societies. They represent mass actions involving women, to equalize their rights with men, for the effective protection of motherhood and childhood. Characterized by a narrow interpretation of social equality of women and men, it was reduced to legal, juridical equality.

Note 2

The emergence of feminist movements dates back to the era of bourgeois revolutions in France, England, and the USA.

List of the most popular social movements of the older age group

Next on the list of ideas are the ones that are most popular among the older age group.

Liberal reformist direction promotes the need for socio-economic and political reforms, with the aim of social equality of women with men. Agreeing with the importance of maternal functions, representatives of this movement call for the involvement of women with high general educational and professional training in political, sociocultural and professional life.

National liberation movements. These are mass actions aimed at overthrowing foreign domination and winning national independence. By joining these movements, national-ethnic communities realize their right to self-determination and the creation of independent nation states.

Peace movements. These movements represent mass actions against the danger of new wars, for strengthening peace and friendly relations between peoples and countries. The development of these movements is characterized by cyclicity. In the twenties of the 20th century, after the end of the First World War, a pacifist movement was formed, whose participants advocated complete disarmament in order to prevent new wars from arising.

Mass social movements- a special class of social phenomena with different levels. These can be broad movements with global goals (the fight for peace, against nuclear testing and for environmental protection), local movements limited to a certain territory or a certain social group (against the use of a nuclear test site in a specific area or a movement for women’s equality) and movements with purely pragmatic goals in a very limited region (for the removal of one of the members of the municipal administration).

Any social movement is always based on a certain public opinion, although subsequently it itself is strengthened and shaped as the movement develops. Every social movement has as its goal a change in the situation and forms a program. The movement is usually aware of the means that can be used to achieve its goals, in particular whether violence is acceptable as one of the means. Any social movement is also realized to one degree or another through various manifestations of mass behavior - demonstrations, rallies, congresses, etc.

In social psychology, three issues are important: the mechanisms of joining the movement, the relationship between majority and minority opinions, and the characteristics of leaders.

The mechanisms of joining the movement can be explained through an analysis of the motives of movement participants. They are divided into fundamental (determined by the conditions of existence, the status of a particular social group and its attitude to a political decision or act of legislation) and momentary (generated by a problem situation and based on purely emotional reactions). Their ratio determines the thoroughness and strength of the movement.

In modern literature, two theories have been proposed to explain the reasons for an individual’s joining a social movement: the theory of relative deprivation and the theory of resource mobilization. The first states that a person feels the need to achieve a goal not in the case when he is absolutely deprived of some good (right, value), but only when he is partially deprived of it and can compare his situation with the situation of others. The second theory focuses on the more “psychological” reasons for joining a movement, arguing that a person experiences the need to identify with a group, feel like a part of it and thereby feel their strength and mobilize resources. Both theories suffer from one-sidedness, overestimating the importance of only one factor, and, apparently, the question of the recruitment of supporters of social movements is still waiting for its researchers.

The problem of the relationship between majority and minority in any mass movement is one of the central ones in the concept of the French social psychologist S. Moscovia (1984). In any social movement, since it unites heterogeneous groups of people, it is easy to identify a minority that does not agree with the opinion of the majority on how to achieve a goal or on other issues. This can weaken the movement and, therefore, a dialogue is needed to ensure the rights of the minority and the prospects for the triumph of their point of view. The author offers characteristics of the conditions under which a minority can count on influence in the movement: they must act synchronously, i.e. demonstrate the unanimity of the participants at any given moment; and their positions and behavior should be stable6* 163 over time. Only if these conditions are met can negotiations between the minority and the majority be successful. It is also necessary to develop the negotiation style itself: the ability to reach a compromise, remove excessive categoricalness, etc.



The leader of a mass movement must have special traits: in addition to the ability to most fully express and defend the goals of the movement, he must also be purely outwardly impressive to the majority of members of the movement. The image of the leader of a social movement should be the subject of his daily attention. The strength of the leader's position and authority largely ensures the success of the movement. These same qualities of a leader help keep the movement within the accepted framework of behavior, which does not allow for easy changes in the chosen tactics and strategy of action.

Weight- This is a fairly organized, conscious formation with unclear boundaries, which is heterogeneous and therefore not very stable.

A mass is a collection of a large number of people who make up an amorphous formation, who usually do not have direct contacts, but are united by common stable interests.

The masses are the subject of various political and socio-cultural movements, the audience of many media of mass communication, and the consumer of works of mass culture. Masses are formed at all levels of the social hierarchy and are distinguished by significant diversity (mass large and small, stable and situational, contact and dispersion).

Signs of mass:

1) the entry of individuals into a given community is disordered, random;

2) has a situational nature, that is, it does not exist outside of any specific activity;

3) openness, blurred boundaries;

4) the statistical nature of the community - the community coincides with a set of discrete “units” and does not represent any independent, holistic formation different from its constituent elements;

5) exists outside of groups and entities, in it the boundaries between all existing social, demographic, political, regional, educational and other groups are destroyed;

6) has an uncertain quantitative and qualitative composition;

7) varies depending on the specific situation.

Distinctive features of the mass:

1) consists of anonymous individuals;

2) members of the mass practically do not interact with each other;

3) unable to act in concert and unity, like a crowd;

4) group members may have different social status;

5) includes people with different class positions, professional and cultural levels, and financial status;

6) members of the mass are usually physically separated from each other;

7) lacks the features of society or community;

8) has no social organization, no structure of status roles.

Psychological characteristics of the mass:

1) impulsiveness and variability - the masses are guided by unconscious imperative impulses, which can be both positive (heroism, nobility) and negative (cowardice, cruelty), capable of defeating even the instinct of self-preservation;

2) unintentionality - the masses do not have thoughtful intentions, all their intentions and feelings are born depending on the situation and exist for a limited time. The mass cannot tolerate any delay between its desire and its implementation;

3) suggestibility, gullibility, lack of criticality - the masses are devoid of reason, they know neither doubts nor hesitations and immediately proceed to the most extreme actions;

4) irritability - aroused by minor stimuli, prone to everything extreme;

5) low integration, weak cohesion of most of it;

6) rich imagination, which requires illusions and myths.

The masses are controlled by the elite. She easily submits to a leader thirsting for power, who does not convince the masses, but subjugates them with force and authority. The leader does not need any logical assessment of his arguments. His task is only to constantly exaggerate and repeat the same thing. To maintain power over the group, the leader needs an opposing real or imaginary object, an enemy, towards whom he directs the aggressive attraction of the members of the mass. The leader's true ally is fear.

According to the psychoanalytic theory of S. Freud, the basis of the connections that unite the masses is the identification of the child with the father. The mass projects onto the leader the unconscious image of the forefather, who turns into God in the mass consciousness.

Crowd - This is an unstructured, contact, unorganized gathering of people, characterized by the absence of a common goal, connected by a similar emotional state and a common object of attention. The crowd is characterized by a high degree of conformity of its constituent individuals, on whom it has a strong psychological influence.

Social and psychological characteristics of the crowd:

1) suppression of a sense of responsibility for one’s own actions;

2) increasing group suggestibility and reducing the effectiveness of counter-suggestion mechanisms;

3) increasing the emotionality of perception of reality;

4) the emergence of a sense of strength and awareness of anonymity.

Crowd formation mechanisms are rumors and a circular reaction, which is understood as an increasing mutually directed emotional contagion. Mechanisms of influence on the crowd also include infection, suggestion, persuasion and imitation. The main role in the development of these mechanisms is played by mass communication, which has the property of a psychological impact on the behavior and activities of crowd participants, which is deliberately used by the organizers of excesses.

Fixed assets, used in crowd formation are:

1) a word in expressive expression in the form of appeals, interjections, etc.;

2) the strength of the noise and its frequency.

Potential crowds are:

1) public - a large short-term formation of people arising on the basis of common interests;

2) outwardly disorganized contact communities, acting extremely emotionally and unanimously;

3) large amorphous groups, the majority of whose members do not have direct contacts with each other, but are connected by some common, more or less constant interest.

Role structure of the crowd:

1) organizers of mass incidents - individuals who most often belong to an organization or act on its instructions. They carry out preparatory work to create a crowd (they “lose” in advance and plan excesses), choose a convenient time and reason for creating excesses;

2) instigators are persons who claim to gain a leading position, who launch active inciting activities, direct the actions of participants, distribute roles, spread provocative rumors, etc.;

3) an instigator is an individual whose task is to provoke and unleash a conflict;

4) active participants - persons included in the so-called. the “cores” of the crowd, forming its shock group;

5) conflict personalities - persons who seek in an anonymous setting to settle scores with persons in conflict with them, to defuse emotional tension, to give vent to their unbridled temper and sadistic impulses. Among such individuals there are many psychopathic individuals, hooligans, and drug addicts;

6) conscientiously mistaken - individuals who are direct participants in excesses, as a result of an erroneous perception of the causes of the current situation, a false understanding of the principle of justice or under the influence of rumors;

7) emotionally unstable individuals who identify their actions with the general direction of the participants’ actions. They are characterized by increased suggestibility, contagiousness of the general mood, reduced resistance to the influence of other people;

8) curious people - people who observe from the side and do not interfere in the course of events, but with their presence increase the emotional arousal of other participants;

9) adherents - persons who become participants in excesses due to fear of physical violence, under the influence of threats from organizers and instigators.

26. Psychology of intergroup relations: basic concepts and history of research.

An example of studies of intergroup interaction can be studies of intergroup aggression in the concept of G. Le Bon, negative attitudes toward another group in the work of T. Adorno, hostility and fear in psychoanalytic theories, etc.

Experimental studies in this area have been carried out M. Sheriff at an American camp for teenagers. During work activity, changes in intergroup hostility were measured after the formation and division of spontaneously formed groups, as well as in the process of performing various activities in competitive conditions, during which an increase in intergroup hostility was recorded.

M. Sherif proposed a group approach to the study of intergroup relations: the sources of intergroup hostility or cooperation are sought here not in the motives of an individual, but in situations group interaction, however, the purely psychological characteristics—the cognitive and emotional processes that govern various aspects of this interaction—have been lost.

Experiments were carried out within the framework of this orientation. A. Tashfela. Studying intergroup discrimination (in-group favoritism towards one's own group and non-group hostility towards an out-group), A. Tashfel considered the cause of these phenomena. He showed that the establishment of a positive attitude towards one’s group is also observed in the absence of an objective basis for the conflict between groups.

In the experiment, students were shown two paintings by artists and asked to count the number of dots in each painting. Then the experiment participants were randomly divided into two groups: one included those who recorded more dots from one artist, and the other included those who recorded more dots from the other. The in-group and out-group effect immediately emerged, revealing in-group commitment (in-group favoritism) and out-group hostility. This allowed A. Tashfel to conclude that the reason for intergroup discrimination is not in the nature of the interaction, but in the simple fact of awareness of belonging to one’s group and, as a consequence, the manifestation of hostility towards an out-group.

It was concluded that the area of ​​intergroup relations is an area that includes four main processes: social categorization, social identification, social comparison, social (intergroup) discrimination.

The analysis of these processes should, according to A. Teshfel, constitute the actual socio-psychological aspect in the study of intergroup relations.

The group carries within itself a structure of internal interpersonal formal and informal relationships that are associated with the external relations of the group. External relations influence the internal relations of the group. This dependence was determined in the research of M. Sherif, who studies the patterns of intergroup relations. In conditions of competitive activity, a conflict of interests provokes the development of aggression and hostility towards representatives of another group. There is an increase in intra-group solidarity, an increase in the impenetrability of the boundaries of group membership, an increase in social control in the group, and a decrease in the degree of deviation of individuals from fulfilling group norms. A threat from another group causes positive changes in the structure of the group that feels threatened. The leading relationship between social groups is that of rivalry.

The most important factor influencing intergroup relations is the nature of joint activities, which I was researching V. Hanoves, member of an international expedition. Its participants differed from each other in nationality, age, culture, religion, political views, etc. During the expedition, the group was divided into subgroups three times. At the first stage, the group was divided into two subgroups based on sociability. Intergroup relations changed as soon as the expedition began to encounter difficulties requiring maximum effort. The emergence of three subgroups was observed, the formation of which was associated with attitudes towards work. When the expedition came to an end, there was a division into subgroups according to the level of culture.

Conclusion of V. Hanoves: neither racial, nor age, nor social differences play a significant role in relations between people. The exception is the cultural level.

In an extreme situation, the group is divided into microgroups, depending on the circumstances and personal characteristics of the individuals.

The main functions of intergroup relations are the preservation, stabilization and development of groups as functional units of social life. When interacting with other groups, each strives for a stable state by maintaining a relative balance of tendencies of integration of differentiation. If differentiation tendencies intensify in the group’s external relations, then internal relations will be characterized by an increasing tendency towards integration. Rivalry, cooperation, relations of non-participation are the main strategies of interaction between groups. The dominant strategy is the strategy of competition.

Intergroup interactions – it is a set of socio-psychological phenomena that arise between different groups.

The basis of intergroup relations is the intergroup perception of the diverse socio-psychological connections that arise between social groups.

Specifics of intergroup perception:

1) in combining individual representations into a whole, qualitatively different from its constituent elements;

2) in the long-term and insufficiently flexible formation of intergroup ideas that are resistant to external influences;

3) in schematizing and simplifying the possible range of aspects of perception of another group.

One of the phenomena of intergroup interaction is intergroup differentiation– socio-psychological processes of intergroup perception, comparison and evaluation associated with establishing differences between one’s own and other groups.

Intergroup differentiation consists of two interrelated processes:

1) in-group favoritism (from the Latin favor - favor) is a socio-psychological phenomenon characterized by awareness of members of one’s own group (outgroup) as “one’s own” and providing them with assistance, psychological protection, as opposed to members of another group (ingroup);

2) intergroup discrimination (from the Latin discriminatio - differentiation) is a socio-psychological phenomenon characterized by the desire to underestimate or underestimate the successes and overestimate the failures of other groups, compared to one’s own group.

According to social identity theory G. Tajfela And D. Turner The cause of these phenomena is a series of cognitive processes:

2) social identification - assigning oneself to a certain social category and experiencing one’s social group affiliation;

3) social comparison - establishing differences between social groups.

Another phenomenon of intergroup interaction is intergroup integration, which represents the presence between groups of such connections and dependencies that contribute to their unification and interaction. Integration contributes to a more successful implementation of the functions of both one’s own group and the broader community into which both interacting groups are included.

Phenomena of intergroup integration:

1) group affiliation is a relationship between groups that assume that one of them is an integral part of the other, that is, the interaction of groups of different order scales and volumes. A small group absorbed by a large one functions according to the laws of the first;

2) group openness consists in the group’s desire to receive information and influence from the outside, as a result of which it is exposed to various kinds of influences and evaluations from other groups. It contributes to the renewal of the group and maintaining a balance between the processes of differentiation and integration. The more prosperous the group, the more open it is;

3) intergroup tolerance - tolerance towards other groups;

4) intergroup reference – the desire to achieve the level of an externally significant group, which acts as a bearer of certain values ​​and norms.

The processes of intergroup differentiation and integration coexist in any group. The predominance of the differentiation process as a result of excessive closedness leads the group to stagnation (stagnation), the dominance of the integration process as a result of excessive openness leads to the loss of social stability by the group.

27. Socialization concept .

Socialization is a two-way process, which includes, on the one hand, the individual’s assimilation of social experience by entering the social environment, a system of social connections; on the other hand (often insufficiently emphasized in research), the process of active reproduction by an individual of a system of social connections due to his active activity, active inclusion in the social environment.

The question is posed in such a way that a person not only assimilates social experience, but also transforms it into his own values, attitudes, and orientations. This moment of transformation of social experience does not simply capture its passive acceptance, but presupposes the individual’s activity in applying such transformed experience, i.e. in a certain return, when its result is not just an addition to already existing social experience, but its reproduction, i.e. promoting it to a new level. Understanding the interaction of a person with society includes understanding as a subject of development not only a person, but also society, and explains the existing continuity in such development. With this interpretation of the concept of socialization, an understanding of a person is achieved at the same time as an object and a subject of social relations.

The first side of the socialization process - the assimilation of social experience - is a characteristic of how the environment affects a person; its second side characterizes the moment of human influence on the environment through activity. The activity of the individual’s position is assumed here because any impact on the system of social connections and relationships requires making a certain decision and, therefore, includes processes of transformation, mobilization of the subject, and construction of a certain strategy of activity. Thus, the process of socialization in this understanding in no way opposes the process of personality development, but simply allows us to identify different points of view on the problem. If for developmental psychology the most interesting view of this problem is “from the perspective of the individual,” then for social psychology it is “from the perspective of the interaction of the individual and the environment.”

28. Stages and institutions of socialization.

Since the issues of socialization were considered in most detail in the Freudian system, tradition in the definition stages of socialization took shape precisely in this scheme. As is known, from the point of view of psychoanalysis, the period of early childhood is of particular importance for the development of personality. Other, non-Freudian-oriented schools of social psychology today place special emphasis on the study of socialization specifically during adolescence. But not only the periods of childhood and adolescence are called stages of socialization. Thus, in domestic social psychology, emphasis is placed on the fact that socialization involves the assimilation of social experience, primarily in the course of work. Therefore, the basis for classifying stages is the attitude towards work activity. If we accept this principle, then we can distinguish three main stages: pre-labor, labor and post-labor (Andreenkova, 1970; Gilinsky, 1971).

Pre-labor stage socialization covers the entire period of a person’s life before starting work. In turn, this stage is divided into two more or less independent periods: a) early socialization, covering the time from the birth of the child to his entry into school, i.e. that period which in developmental psychology is called the period of early childhood; b) the stage of learning, which includes the entire period of adolescence in the broad sense of the term. This stage, of course, includes the entire time of schooling. There are different points of view regarding the period of study at a university or technical school. If the criterion for identifying stages is the attitude to work activity, then a university, technical school and other forms of education cannot be classified as the next stage. On the other hand, the specificity of training in educational institutions of this kind is quite significant compared to secondary school, in particular in the light of the increasingly consistent implementation of the principle of combining learning with work, and therefore these periods in a person’s life are difficult to consider according to the same scheme as time at school. One way or another, in the literature the issue receives dual coverage, although with any solution the problem itself is very important both in theoretical and practical terms: students are one of the important social groups of society, and the problems of socialization of this group are extremely relevant.

Labor stage socialization covers the period of human maturity, although the demographic boundaries of “mature” age are relative; fixing such a stage is not difficult - this is the entire period of a person’s working activity. Contrary to the idea that socialization ends with the completion of education, most researchers put forward the idea of ​​continuing socialization during working life. Moreover, the emphasis on the fact that the individual not only assimilates social experience, but also reproduces it, gives special significance to this stage. Recognition of the labor stage of socialization logically follows from the recognition of the leading importance of labor activity for the development of personality. It is difficult to agree that labor, as a condition for the development of a person’s essential forces, stops the process of assimilating social experience; It is even more difficult to accept the thesis that the reproduction of social experience stops at the stage of labor activity. Of course, youth is the most important time in the development of personality, but work in adulthood cannot be discounted when identifying the factors of this process.

Post-labor stage socialization is an even more complex issue. A certain justification, of course, can be the fact that this problem is even newer than the problem of socialization at the labor stage. Its formulation is caused by the objective requirements of society for social psychology, which are generated by the very course of social development. Problems of old age are becoming relevant for a number of sciences in modern societies. Increasing life expectancy - on the one hand, certain social policies of states - on the other (meaning the pension system) lead to the fact that old age begins to occupy a significant place in the population structure. First of all, its specific gravity increases. The labor potential of those individuals who make up such a social group as pensioners is largely preserved. It is no coincidence that disciplines such as gerontology and geriatrics are now experiencing a period of rapid development.

In social psychology, this problem is present as a problem of the post-work stage of socialization. The main positions in the discussion are polar opposites: one of them believes that the very concept of socialization is simply meaningless when applied to that period of a person’s life when all his social functions are curtailed. From this point of view, this period cannot be described at all in terms of “assimilation of social experience” or even in terms of its reproduction. An extreme expression of this point of view is the idea of ​​"desocialization" that follows the completion of the socialization process. Another position, on the contrary, actively insists on a completely new approach to understanding the psychological essence of old age. This position is supported by quite numerous experimental studies of the continuing social activity of older people; in particular, old age is considered as an age that makes a significant contribution to the reproduction of social experience. The question is only raised about the change in the type of activity of the individual during this period.

An indirect recognition that socialization continues into old age is E. Erikson’s concept of the existence of eight human ages (infancy, early childhood, play age, school age, adolescence and youth, youth, middle age, maturity). Only the last of the ages - “maturity” (the period after 65 years) can, according to Erikson, be designated by the motto “wisdom”, which corresponds to the final formation of identity (Burns, 1976. P. 53; 71-77). If we accept this position, then we must admit that the post-labor stage of socialization does exist.

Institutions of socialization.

At the pre-labor stage of socialization, such institutions are: in the period of early childhood - the family and preschool children's institutions, which play an increasingly important role in modern societies. The family has traditionally been viewed as the most important institution of socialization in a number of concepts. It is in the family that children acquire their first interaction skills, master their first social roles (including gender roles, the formation of masculinity and femininity traits), and comprehend their first norms and values. The type of parental behavior (authoritarian or liberal) influences the formation of the child’s “self-image” (Burns, 1986). The role of the family as an institution of socialization naturally depends on the type of society, its traditions and cultural norms. Despite the fact that the modern family cannot claim the role that it played in traditional societies (an increase in the number of divorces, few children, the weakening of the traditional position of the father, women’s employment), its role in the process of socialization still remains very significant (Kon, 1989. P. 26).