This document provides an overview of a lecture on social change and community development. It defines social change as important alterations in a society's social structure, patterns of interaction, norms, values and cultural products. Social change occurs through modifications in social institutions and relationships. The lecture objectives are to understand the meaning and nature of social change, factors influencing social change, sources of social change, and analyzing social change's relevance. The document then discusses the nature of social change, listing that it is an ongoing, multi-causal process that varies in scope, speed and pattern between societies. Factors causing social change include technological developments, population changes, urbanization, education and conflicts.

1. Module Title:
Social Change and Community
Development
Module Code:DPPM 111
Lecture by:
Tongai Dana
(PGDE 505)

2. Lecture Objectives
At the end of this Lecture, students should have in-depth appreciation of the following:
1. Meaning and Nature of Social Change
2. Factors that influence Social Change
3. Sources of Social Change
4. Relevance of Analysing Social Change

4. Social Change Defined
 Change is a very broad concept and is all around us. However not all change is we do not refer to social change.
 The International Encyclopaedia of the Social Science (IESS 1972) defines social change as the important
alterations that occur in the social structure, or in the pattern of action and interaction in societies.
 According to M.E. Jones defines Social Change is a term used to describe variations in, or modifications of, any
aspect of social process, social patterns, social interaction or social organisations.
 These alterations may occur in norms, values, cultural products and symbols in a society. However key in our
module are alterations in the structure and function of a social system.
 Social change occurs in institutions and affects social, political, economical patterns of interaction
 From a sociology perspective, social change as alterations that occur in the social structure and social
relationship. For example; wife/husband relationship, employee/employer relationships, superior/subordinate
relationships etc.

5. Nature of Social Change
i) Change is an “on-going” process, No society remains completely static.
ii) When studying social change, the focus should be on variations in social structures, institutions and social
relationships.
iii) Social change is essentially a process of alteration with no reference to the quality of change.
iv) Social change denotes time-sequence. It is a becoming, not a being; a process, not a product
v. Degree or rate of change is not uniform, it varies in its scope and in speed.
 It can be small scale or large scale changes, can take a cyclical pattern.
 It can be revolutionary
 In the rural social structure the rate of change maybe slower, whereas it is quick in the urban societies.
 It can include short term changes as well as long term changes
vi) Social change is universal because it is present in all societies and at all times.

6. Nature of Social Change Cont...
vii) Social change is inevitable. It is the human nature that desires change and also it is his tendency to bring
change and to oppose or accept change.
viii) Social Change may be planned or unplanned
ix) Social change creates chain-reactions
x) Social change is multi-causal, whilst a single factor may cause social change, it is usually caused by a number of
factors .
GROUP DISCUSSIONS
QUIZ. Making reference to examples from your society explain the main characteristics of social change?

7. Factors of Social Change
 Prior discussions have shown that social change takes place in all societies and in all periods of time.
 However, the key question is why does social change take place?, that is the reasons, the causes or the factors
which are responsible for social change.
 Some of these factors are shown in the following diagram:

8. Nature of Social Change Cont...
World Development Report: The State in a Changing World (New York: Oxford University Press for the World
Bank, 1997.
Excerpts from Coe, Catie. 2005. Dilemmas of Culture in African Schools: Youth, Nationalism, and the
Transformation of Knowledge. Chicago: U of Chicago Press.
Charon, J. M. (2004). Social change: A sociological view. Ten questions: A sociological perspective (pp. 225-236).
Belmont, CA: Wadsworth/Thomson.
Polletta, F. (2008). Culture and Movements. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 619,
78-96.
Deutsch, M. (2006). A framework for thinking about oppression and its change. Social Justice Research, 19(1), 7-
41.
Aronowitz, S. (2003). The new social movements and class. In S. Aronowitz, How class
works: Power and social movement (pp. 141-170). New Haven, CT: Yale University Press
Taylor, D. (1998). Social identity and social policy: Engagements with postmodern theory. Journal of Social
Policy, 27(3), 329-350.

9. DISCUSSION
Questions
Additions
Comments

10. THE END
• THANK YOU
• MAITA
• SIYABONGA
• Arikato
• ASJIKI
•ASANTE SANA