Factors inhibiting social change – Every human life in this world cannot be separated from the so-called social change. What’s more, nowadays the development of the times continues to move faster and faster from time to time. One proof of the increasingly advanced times is the use of smartphones which are used by almost all people.
Sinaumed’s, do you know what social change means? On this occasion, we will discuss more about social change and the inhibiting factors for social change. So, read this article to the end, OK?
Definition of Social Change
Social change is the process of changing the structure and function of the social system. In social change there are two factors that influence it, the first is the driving factor and the second is the inhibiting factor.
These changes can take place sooner or later, affecting the environment. According to Hawley, social change is a change that is not repeated from the social system as a whole.
Experts divide the classification of society into static and dynamic. Static society is a group of people who experience little change that progresses slowly.
Meanwhile, a dynamic society is a group of people who experience rapid changes. These changes can mean both progress and setbacks.
Etymologically, social change means changes in various social institutions that can affect the social system of society including values, attitudes, patterns, behavior among groups in society.
According to Piotr Sztompka, social change can be imagined as changes that occur within or include social systems with differences between the states of certain systems at different times.
The Basic Concept of Social Change
There are three basic conceptual criteria for social change, which include:
The Study of Differences
The study of differences means being able to see differences or changes in the conditions of the objects that are the focus of study. This study must be carried out at a different time, or a comparative study must be carried out in a different time dimension.
Observations on the Same Social System
Observations on a social system that have the same meaning as the object being the comparative study must be the same object. Thus, the discussion of social change is always related to the dimensions of space and time.
Space Dimension
The spatial dimension refers to the area where social change occurs and the conditions surrounding it. Of course, this dimension is inseparable from the historical aspects that occurred in the region.
This spatial dimension is a social change in view of the past/ past , present/present and future. From time to time will be compared, so that social changes can be found.
Definition of Social Change According to Experts
The following is the definition of social change according to experts, namely:
William F. Ogburn
Quoting from the book Sociology, Understanding and Studying Society, William F. Ogburn said that social change includes cultural, material and immaterial elements that have a big influence.
Kingsley Davis
Kingsley Davis said that social change is a change that occurs in the structure and function of society. For example, capitalist society and labor organizations.
Gillin and Gillin
Gilin and Gilin say that social change is a variation of an accepted way of life. The reason is due to changes in geographical conditions, material culture, population, ideology, and new discoveries in society.
Samuel Koenig
According to Samuel Koenig, social change is a modification that occurs in patterns of human life due to internal and external causes.
Selo Soemardjan
Selo Soemardjan stated that social change is all changes that occur in social institutions in a society. These changes affect social systems, values, attitudes and behavior patterns of community groups.
Max Weber
According to Max Weber, social change is a situation in society that changes due to an incompatibility of the elements in it.
MacIver
According to Mac Iver, social change occurs because of an imbalance in social relations.
Characteristics of Social Change
- Every society changes sooner or later. No society stops experiencing social change.
- In a social institution will be followed by changes in other social institutions. This is because social institutions are interdependent and mutually influence one another.
- Social change results in disorganization, which is temporary for the adjustment process.
- In society, the changes that occur cannot be isolated in the material or spiritual field.
Forms of Social Change
Social change in society can be divided into several forms, namely:
Evolution Change/Slow
This change takes quite a long time and occurs by itself without a specific plan or will. The community is only trying to adapt to new circumstances, needs and conditions that arise in line with the growth of society.
Revolution/Quick Change
This change is a change that takes place and runs quickly. This happens both planned and unplanned and can be carried out without violence. This change is considered fast because it changes the main pillars of people’s lives, such as the family system and relations between people.
Small Changes
Small changes occur in elements of the social structure that do not have a direct or significant impact on society. For example, in the 1990s, women in Indonesia wore kebaya or traditional clothes for their daily activities. However, as time goes by, and the development of the times and changes in fashion can change the models of clothes they wear.
Major changes
Major changes are changes that affect society and its institutions, such as in the work system, land property rights system, family relations and community stratification.
Desired Change
Changes that are predicted or planned in advance by parties who want to make changes in society. These parties are called agents of change, namely a group or someone who has the public’s trust as a leader in changing social institutions.
Structural Change
Changes that have a fundamental nature that is the cause of the emergence of reorganization in people’s lives.
Process Change
Change that is the opposite of structural change because it is not fundamental. Process change is a refinement of the previous change.
Examples of Social Change
There are many examples of social change in our environment, including the following:
Changes in Remittance
As times progress, technology and information experience a shift in remittances. Previously, money was sent via money orders, now money can be sent or withdrawn through ATMs, internet banking, SMS banking and applications on smart phones. The money transfer process does not take a long time and can be done quickly and easily.
The Internet Shifts Cultural Changes in Society
Social change due to the existence of the internet is the rise of online shopping via the internet. So that buyers do not need to go to the store, just look at the items they want and then buy them.
Then, the item will be sent via courier and will arrive at the house. This social change changed buying and selling transactions where previously buyers and sellers had to meet.
Learn from Home
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, learning at school can be carried out at home. Teachers can interact with their students through video call applications . In addition, students can also submit assignments via cell phones or laptops.
Online Shopping
Online shopping is widely used because of advances in technology and communication in the internet field, so you might be one of those people who often shop online .
The Influence of Fashion Models
The influence of fashion models in the industrial sector provides socio-cultural changes in dress code. For example, many people now use the hijab. Many Muslim fashion models are sold in stores, so they can attract consumers/buyers.
Television Changes People’s Behavior
Television can change people’s behavior quickly. For example, consumerist behavior or excessive spending can arise because people watch a lot of advertisements on television.
Factors Causing Social Change
According to Soerjono Soekanto, the causes of social change are two factors, namely internal factors (within the community) and external factors (from outside the community).
Factors from Within (Internal)
Changes in Total Population
The existence of population growth in an area results in the full level of community density. This causes job opportunities to dwindle, so that in the end some people move to other places and make social changes.
There is a New Discovery
Within this factor, the new invention of a technology can also change the individual’s system when establishing life with other individuals. The existence of new things that can be used in interactions, the performance of some humans will be increasingly replaced, resulting in social change.
For example, the invention of social media such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram is shaping new social changes in people’s lives.
Opposition or Conflict
The existence of disputes can be considered as differences in interests held by each community group. This can be seen from the case of differences in the interests of the upper class and the lower class. With this social change can occur either slowly or quickly.
Revolution or Rebellion
Rebellion or revolution still has something to do with conflict factors. However, this rebellion as the next stage can lead to the emergence of new common interests or even coups that indirectly change social life. For example, the industrial revolution in England caused social changes in the industrial sector.
External Factors (External)
Natural Disaster or Physical Environment
Natural disasters often force people who live in an area to find a new place. From this incident, those who are new will adapt both the social system and the way of life.
War
All wars that occur can change the existing social system. We can see that the winning side usually imposes an ideology it adheres to. While the losers will follow the winners.
Cultural Influence of Other Communities
According to Soekanto (1999), if there is a culture that has a higher level than other cultures, it will lead to a process of imitation that can shift the existence of the original culture. In fact, it can disappear completely and be completely replaced by the dominating one.
Factors Inhibiting Social Change
In people’s lives, the process of social change can experience speed or slowness. These inhibiting factors can change the process of change in society.
The inhibiting factors for social change are:
1. Lack of Interaction with Other Communities
One of the inhibiting factors for social change is the lack of interaction between communities. These factors can hinder social change and development. Groups of people like this still adhere to simple patterns of thought and their own culture. For example, the tribes that live in the interior.
2. Society is Traditional
Some community groups still hold strong customs in the environment. They reject anything new that can change social change. This traditional attitude can also impede society towards more dynamic social changes.
3. Low Education
Another factor is the simple perspective and mindset of the people. Generally, people with low education cannot directly accept new things that exist. The community is also unwilling or slow to follow existing social changes, so these changes are static and slow.
4. Prejudice towards Foreign Culture
One of the factors is that society rejects social change because they reject change from outside. Past experiences such as colonialism have made some groups reject and have prejudice against foreign cultures.
5. Ideological Barriers
Traditional society still holds strong ideology in social life. This ideology is considered the basic guideline.
6. Firmly Embedded Interests
A community group has interests that are firmly entrenched, so change will be difficult to occur. This group tries to maintain the existing system until they are afraid of changes that could change their position and status.
7. Alienated Community Life
Isolated communities occur because some areas do not get communication and transportation. One of the factors of socio-cultural change is because technology has not yet spread. Therefore, some areas have not yet received communication and transportation facilities.
Impact of Obstacles to Social Change
Isolated communities like this have an impact on the development of social life. The impact will be difficult to develop and enrich their own culture.
The Development of Science is Not Equal
The development of science that is hampered will have an impact on slow social change. This can happen because trust in schools is still lacking.
Customs
Customs as behavior and behavior passed down from generation to generation. New socio-cultural changes are not necessarily accepted by certain groups. Because people in some areas still hold fast to their customs, so they are still inherent in society. That way, the local community will find it difficult to develop with the times.
Value that Life is Essentially Bad and Impossible to Improve
This value is owned by some individuals who have a background in experiencing a failure, in fact it can make them feel that in essence life is bad and it is impossible to fix it. Feelings of despair and giving up are more dominant than wanting to get up and try something new again, so this value becomes an obstacle to social change.
Factors Driving Social Change
The factors driving social change are as follows:
Contact with Other Cultures
Community groups that experience rapid social change are due to the process of exchanging information and other cultures. For example, contact with traders from India, Arabia and the West. This contact can accelerate the pace of social change.
Advanced Education System
One of the factors accelerating the process of social change is scientific and objective thinking. The existence of advanced education can encourage patterns of socio-cultural changes that keep up with the times.
Society’s Desire to Progress
People who will change their lives in a more advanced direction can accelerate the process of change. For example, students who take swimming lessons to hone new skills.
Heterogeneous Population
The existence of differences with a population consisting of one type or a diverse community can accelerate the process of social change. In an environment that consists of various ethnicities, races and ideologies, high tolerance can emerge and reduce conflict that encourages social change.
Tolerance of Change
Tolerance can make people accept new things. This attitude can encourage people to think more forward and encourage better social change.
Searching for a Specific Field
A group is trying to find a way to change lives. This feeling of dissatisfaction can push people to look for certain areas and demand a total change.
Impact of Socio-Cultural Change
There are two impacts that occur in socio-cultural changes, namely positive impacts and negative impacts, as follows:
Positive impact :
- Socio-cultural changes can change people’s behavior patterns. For example, people’s behavior that was previously irrational becomes rational.
- Changing the mindset of a more advanced society.
- Encouraging people to add insight and knowledge.
- Increase technological progress.
- Public awareness of the rules.
- Improve standard of living.
- There is an attitude of hard work and respect for time.
- Changing the system of division of labor between men and women according to their respective abilities.
Negative impact:
- The emergence of consumptive and wasteful behavior.
- There is social inequality and social jealousy.
- The development of westernized lifestyles, such as the occurrence of promiscuity and trends in inappropriate clothing models.
- There are new understandings that are not in accordance with the personality of the nation.
- There is a cultural lag due to the uneven distribution of technology and knowledge.
- Increasing crime.
- Shows self-centeredness or individualism.
That is an explanation of social change to the inhibiting factors of social change . So, which books aren’t on the bookshelf right now, Sinaumed’s? If Sinaumed’s is still confused, still needs references related to social change, then you can visit sinaumedia’s book collection at sinaumedia.com .
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Author: Rosyda Nur Fauziyah
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