Introduction
Many people have experienced social changes that the environment has impacted. Alteration implies all variations in human societies that can lead to positive or negative outcomes. When transformation occurs in the modes of living of persons and social relations get affected, such alteration is called social changes. For instance, today’s environmental problems are linked to social changes and the cultural drivers that shape power relations and unequal control over capitals. Humans are also believed to be the primary cause of environmental pollution on Earth. Therefore, one can analyze social change, its sources, and how it is linked to the environment.
Social change is defined as the revolution of culture, social institutions, behavior, and social structure over time. Horticultural, pastoral, hunting-and-gathering, postindustrial, and industrial are the most familiar basic types of society. These groups differ in technology, inequality, size, gender roles, and economy. In any given large number of individuals engaged in activities that vary from those in which their immediate fathers have been involved in some time before, social change is found (Caruso 380). The industrial revolution and the feminist movement are aspects that have been involved in social changes. Many scholars have focused on how social activities have been used in societies to bring social change. Moreover, communities have guaranteed that they are modern to limit social challenges experienced by some individuals.
Modernization
Modernization has also become a significant factor that has impacted social changes. Many societies have focused on improving how people interact irrespective of their differences. For instance, technology has been used to develop communities and ensure that all people are valued and appreciated. Social changes have been encountered following the increased modernization. For example, the industrial revolution has impacted how people perform various tasks in society and the different activities they practice. Evolvement has been encountered, which has led to people becoming more extensive and more diverse. Today, many communities are more creative and have abandoned the old ways that are no longer necessary. Thus, modernization is an essential aspect that can be analyzed when focusing on social change.
Social Movements
Although knowledge, environmental conditions, population, and racial injustice may contribute to social change, it is when community members band together to form social movements that real change occurs. This term applies to group practices aimed at bringing about or resisting immediate changes in an existing group. Social activities had the most significant impact on society’s trajectory. When people break free from conventional boundaries, they can influence substantial changes in social policy and systems. Even though the initiative was successful, social movements affected public sentiment.
Relative Deprivation
When people of a country are unhappy with their social, political, or economic circumstances, they demand reform. Social scientists have long recognized that people’s understanding of their needs, not their actual living circumstances, is at fault. Relative deprivation is the opposing viewpoint that there are differences between desires and realities. This group is dissatisfied because they feel they are not as entitled or lucky as a reference group (Grasso et al. 400). For example, a middle-class family may feel poor when comparing their home to an upper-class neighbor. To convert social unrest into social movements, citizens must believe they are entitled to the right or status. These people can form a social movement only if they believe that collective action will benefit. Some sociologists have argued that this theory approaches critique from a unique perspective. For example, some individuals have argued that various aspects determine human behaviors, and people do not have to feel deprived to act. This theory, however, fails to explain why certain people’s personal experiences of oppression led them to change society while others did not.
Sources of Social Change
Culture and Technology
Technology has become one of the significant aspects impacting how people live in the community. For starters, it forms various cultures and distinguishes them from one another. A concentrated student can access information via a conference halfway worldwide without leaving their physical homes due to the introduction of computers and teleconferencing technology. Instant contact has been created by the internet and smartphones, making the planet appear to be a small village (Caruso 385). This technological innovation has minimized the barriers that historically divided people based on their socioeconomic status. Scholars studying abroad would send a letter home a decade ago, and it could take up to three weeks for it to arrive. After that, they would have to wait for three weeks for a response from their parents. However, this has changed since mobile phones and computers are now available in even the most distant areas of the globe.
Cars were also introduced and had an impact on people’s lives. Moreover, individuals developed the speed and efficiency of automobiles. The social and physical landscape of the United States and other developed countries was therefore impacted by automobiles. Correspondingly, roads and highways were constructed, the population grew, and families started to live further apart. Furthermore, the introduction of vehicles resulted in the deaths of many people due to traffic collisions. As the planet becomes a smaller location, different cultures’ chances come into contact with one another. Different societies adopt some of the customs, beliefs, and other community elements, resulting in social change.
Cultural Lag
Cultural lag is another essential factor of social change that can be analyzed in various areas. According to Caruso (381), cultural lag can broadly impact a community’s culture in multiple ways. Typically, it involves the first changes and the following social variation. For example, industries were constructed during the industrial revolution, leading to more dangerous working environments. Additional industrial accidents were registered, but the injured workers were not paid because the current law of negligence permitted them to prosecute the person whose carelessness caused the damage, usually a coworker. Additionally, negligent employees were mainly from low-income families who would not compensate them if they were disciplined. Workers in some countries started suing the firms whose unsafe workplaces caused their harm.
The Environment
There are four reasons why the environment is a sociological topic. First, human activities are the leading causes of environmental problems; these activities are good topics for sociological study. Secondly, ecological issues, like many other social issues studied by sociologists, have a direct effect on individuals. Thirdly, explanations for the environmental problems necessitate improvements in economic and environmental policies, the impact of which is strongly influenced by social and political factors. Finally, many ecological problems represent social inequity based on race, ethnicity, and social status. Hence, these aspects indicate that the climate is a sociological problem. Humans should focus on environmental concerns, and people must develop ways of limiting some of the conservational problems.
Additionally, the more individuals neglect the sociological aspects of environmental degradation; the more likely the proposed solutions will fail. Thus, the environment has a significant impact on how people live and can be associated with social change. Other natural calamities such as floods and hurricanes have also impacted people’s lives, whereby individuals are forced to relocate to other areas. Therefore, these aspects contribute to social change since humans have to adapt to their new environment. Moreover, people have different beliefs and behaviors in various communities. Thus, new settlers have to experience a change when in a new environment.
Air Pollution
Air pollution has become one of the significant threats in the modern world. Many people have died due to health complications steered by greenhouse gases. Many companies and individuals are using fossil fuels, which has led to increased air contamination in various states. Not only are the wealthy industrial states affected by this problem but also developing countries. India and China have the most severe air pollution problems. People in developing countries’ cities with high particulate matter levels, including carbon and nitrates, have mortality rates 155-405 times higher than those in healthier towns (Peng et al. 78). Air pollution is expected to decrease life expectancy by 8.6 months in Europe (Peng et al. 89). Thus, these issues have forced people to migrate to other areas, whereby they experience social changes.
Environmental Justice and Environmental Racism
The Environmental Justice Crusade has extended the environment’s definition to include where people live, work, play, study, and pray. The organization focused on just protecting and conserving natural possessions. The movement is multi-generational, multi-racial, and global, intending to foster environmental, economic, and social justice by identifying the direct connection between economic, environmental, and health problems and pushing for a safer, cleaner community and workplace (Kern et al. 952). This justice is understood when everyone has the opportunity to reach their full potential without being hampered by environmental racism or discrimination.
Environmental injustice refers to how marginalized communities are disproportionately burdened with hazardous waste facilities and other forms of contamination that degrade life quality. Increased waste in communities has led to health complications, whereby some conditions such as lung diseases and cancer are being recorded. Many people from low socioeconomic living in polluted areas are developing various health disorders, which has led to many deaths. Consequently, these areas’ challenges can lead to social changes and force individuals to move to other regions.
Conclusion
To sum up, social change is being experienced globally due to various aspects such as modernization and environmental factors. For instance, through modernization, communities abandoned traditional ways of life and adopted modern ones. Social movements helped individuals to break free from conventional boundaries. Relative deprivation is the opposing viewpoint that there are differences between desires and realities. Sources of social change include culture and technology and cultural lag. The environment is one of the critical topics of sociology since it involves human interaction with the environment. Issues such as immigration have been experienced due to environmental aspects. These immigrants have to experience new changes affecting culture, religion, and beliefs. The public should also be educated on the importance of ensuring that the environment is conserved to prevent some issues such as pollution, which can lead to adverse effects on human health. Issues such as greenhouse gases emission can be limited to curb air contamination that can lead to various conditions and lead to social changes. Thus, social change can be linked to the environment due to various aspects that people experience in the community.
Works Cited
Caruso, Loris. “Digital Innovation and the Fourth Industrial Revolution: Epochal Social Changes?.” Ai & Society, vol. 33, no. 3, 2018, pp. 379-392. Web.
Grasso, Maria T., et al. “Relative Deprivation and Inequalities in Social and Political Activism.” Acta Politica, vol. 54, no.3, 2019, pp. 398-429. Web.
Kern, Leslie, and Caroline Kovesi. “Environmental Justice Meets the Right to Stay Put: Mobilizing Against Environmental Racism, Gentrification, and Xenophobia in Chicago’s Little Village.” Local Environment, vol. 23, no. 9, 2018, pp. 952-966. Web.
Peng, Minggang, et al. “Actual Air Pollution, Environmental Transparency, and the Perception of Air Pollution in China.” The Journal of Environment & Development, vol. 28, no.1, 2019, pp. 78-105. Web.