The first, the emergent-norm perspective, emphasizes the importance of social norms in crowd behavior. The next, the value-added theory , is a functionalist perspective that states that several preconditions must be in place for collective behavior to occur.
What are the three major theories that explain crowd behavior?
In this lesson, we will discuss three different theories to explain crowd behavior: contagion theory, convergent theory, and emergent norm theory .
What are the theories of collective behaviour?
There are three main theories on collective behavior. The first, the emergent-norm perspective, emphasizes the importance of social norms in crowd behavior. The next, the value-added theory, is a functionalist perspective that states that several preconditions must be in place for collective behavior to occur.
What was the earliest theories of collective behavior?
Perhaps the earliest formulations of collective behaviour are to be found in crowd psychology . Gustave Le Bon, in The Crowd: A Study of the Popular Mind (1895), argued that the crowd was a real collective entity since ‘it forms a single being, and is subjected to the law of the mental unity of crowds’.
What is collective behaviorism?
Collective behaviour, the kinds of activities engaged in by sizable but loosely organized groups of people . Episodes of collective behaviour tend to be quite spontaneous, resulting from an experience shared by the members of the group that engenders a sense of common interest and identity.
What are the 4 types of crowds?
Other sociologists distinguished four types of crowds: casual, conventional, expressive, and acting .
What are the factors of collective behavior?
There are three primary forms of collective behavior: the crowd, the mass, and the public . It takes a fairly large number of people in close proximity to form a crowd (Lofland 1993).
What are the most common types of crowd behavior?
Sociologist Herbert Blumer (1969) developed a popular typology of crowds based on their purpose and dynamics. The four types he distinguished are casual crowds, conventional crowds, expressive crowds, and acting crowds .
How do crowds behave?
This field relates to the behaviors and thought processes of both the individual crowd members and the crowd as an entity. Crowd behavior is heavily influenced by the loss of responsibility of the individual and the impression of universality of behavior , both of which increase with crowd size.
Why do behaviors per person change with crowd?
Social identity theorists argue that when in a crowd, we experience a shift from our individual selves to a collective self , and our behaviour in response to this shift is regulated by the social norms shared by our fellow group members.
What are the preconditions needed for collective behavior?
He identified 6 preconditions for collective behavior. These are structural conduciveness, structural strain, growth and the spread of a generalized belief, precipitating factors, mobilization for action, and social control .
What are the preconditions for collective behavior?
He noted six conditions that must be present: (1) the social structure must be peculiarly conducive to the collective behaviour in question; (2) a group of people must experience strain; (3) a distinctive type of belief must be present to interpret the situation; (4) there must be a precipitating event; (5) the group ...
What is the contagion theory?
The Contagion theory proposes that crowds exert a hypnotic influence on their members . The hypnotic influence, combined with the anonymity of belonging to a large group of people, results in irrational, emotionally charged behavior.
Why is it important to understand collective behavior?
Collective Behavior’s great interest lies in its high cultural value , as it can explain important social phenomena, and because of its high concrete and practical value; studies on the dynamics of Collective Behavior can help prevent unrest, and violence; it can also help to plan and suggest strategies as to prevent ...
Why do we study collective behavior?
Studying collective behavior improves our understanding of how to organize social movements to initiate social change .
Social collectives are assemblages of actors that affect and are affected by others or by a specific object or situation , and eventually share a common situation-specific understanding of the self as part of a collective.
