Introduction
Change refers to transformation from one form to another. Social change refers to the alteration of customs as well as social institutions after some time. In the world today we have the knowledge that the globe is not inert and that changes occur in the political, economic as well as the social sphere. There are various theories describing change. According to Macionis (1996) social change is characterized by four features. Change occurs in all places. However it is only the rate by which it occurs which differs. For example change in developed countries occurs much faster than in the developing world due to the influence of technology. Change may be targeted but not necessarily premeditated. A case in point is the invention of the aircraft which was meant to make the speed of travel faster nevertheless it had other effects like immigration which had not been foreseen. This is evidenced by the fact that the invention of aircrafts has made travelling easier and hence people can move from one continent to another (Brown, 2004) and settle in other territories that was not their birth place. Change may also create debate due to the changing values for example the issue of homosexuality is regarded as deviance while some people consider it as something normal. Various forms of transformation may be extra necessary as compared to others. For example the invention of computers benefits more as compared to inventions like toys (Macionis, 1999).
The family is meant to perform three primary functions namely: socialization of the child, procreation as well as giving provision to outline sexual associations. Due to the various influences in the world this has changed and brought about deviance.
Factors contributing to change
There are various causes of change ranging from religion, culture, transnational organizations namely the EU, WTO and so on. Other factors include technology, ideologies, demographic factors and so on.
Demographic factors
Changes in population trends affect the size as well as the components of the changing population. This will then translate to transformation in the political, economic as well as the social sphere of such a population (Church, 2002). Transformation may occur due to changes in population patterns for example, the increase or decrease in population as well as the change in migration patterns. An increase in population means that the resource of a country will be over stretched and hence the governments of a country facing such a situation will have to restructure their policies to accommodate the changing population trends (Brown, 2004).
Changes in the population change the structure of the family as well. A case in point is where families choose to adopt family planning methods so as to ensure they have small families which they can cater for. Countries which have great opportunities may experience changes in their population patterns in terms of the rising number of immigrants who move to countries like America in such of better opportunities. This then translates to either positive or negative effects. One negative effect of immigration took place in the US, towards the end of the nineteenth century where the mass relocation to the US led to a decrease in the rural population as well as an increase in the number of city dwellers (Macionis, 1999).
Presently the decrease in the number of deaths has led to the increase in population. This meant that policies had to be formulated around the world to maintain this situation of low death rates and thus translating to improved quality of life where the causes of death are reduced by virtue of the policies formulated (Brown, 2004).
Culture
Culture acts as the foundation for innovation which is the main source of culture change. The second source of civilizing transformation is discovery. In this case people come to know what had not existed before or it had previously existed but had no knowledge about it and this comes to form part of their culture and thus transforming those (Farkas, 1998). Lastly, transformation in culture is caused by diffusion where ideas are spread to other members of the society through migration, trade as well as the media. The most influencing tool of culture change is the mass media since it is accessible to majority of the populace in the world in various forms namely the newspapers, magazines, internet as well as the television. The factors that play a role in changing the social world in regards to culture include beliefs, inventions, values, knowledge as well as exchanges. Culture happens to be one of the most influential factors in propelling change. The structures in the society are informed by the values created in culture in one way or another. Transformation in the beliefs or values of a society will in turn have an effect on the social structures. For instance the nuclear family in India as well Indians all over the world has changed where originally it was a joint family but now more and more Indians are adopting the nuclear family. This has then led to a change in the associations in the family unit. The major contributing factor to this is the interaction of the Indians with the other people with different cultures and thus influencing the way they live. Transformation brought about by culture brings about international change in the social realm (Farkas, 1998).
Ideologies
Ideological factors which contribute to international change in the social realm include ideologies, beliefs as well as values. Ideologies affect people internationally in the political, social as well as the political sphere. According to Max Weber it is the beliefs, values as well as the ideologies which influence change in the social realm. Ideological factors which have influenced people around the world include factors such as nationalism which affects the politics of a country. This factor stipulates that people should identify themselves as one in matters pertaining to a shared history as well as identity for example the French, Palestinians who practice culture which they regard. This ideology has been spread through out the world and you will find people around the world fighting to be recognized as one entity (Olson, 1963). For example Palestinians are always seeking recognition as a separate entity from its neighbouring region and thus raising political concerns around the world as to whether the Palestinians can be legally accepted around the world as a distinct people occupying a certain area known as Palestine. This affects people around the world as violence in such areas means that people will migrate from this area and put pressure on the neighbouring countries where they move to (Olson, 1963).
Secondly another ideological factor which influences international change in the social world is capitalism. This ideology mainly looks at the economic system and the classes arising from it (Ansell and Weber, 1999). This ideology is based on various principles which include ownership of one’s own private property, free market as well as competition. This ideology has been adopted by many countries around the world. Countries that are opposed to it for example China practice communism. However their economic system cannot be said to be entirely communist as it has elements of capitalism in their system. This ideology has brought about change in the world in that it has given rise to classes namely the bourgeoisie, who own the means of production and the proletariat who are the workers. The differentiation in classes has changed the social interaction where the bourgeoisie oppress the proletariats. This has led to a fight of equality around the world due to this oppression of the proletariats by the bourgeoisie (Macionis, 1999).
Technology
One of the factors causing rapid social change around the world is technology. As society advances, the need for technology increases since it plays a key role in the process of production. Information is increasingly becoming a necessary tool guiding the way in which people live as it improves the quality of life as the well as speeding up the production process. The information technology has impacted greatly in terms of spreading culture as well as ideas. Technology is very important in propelling change being advocated by organizations. Any form of development in society is linked to the improvement in technology.
According to sociologists, the changes brought about in the society are brought about by the change in the environment which originates from technology. The change is mainly in the surrounding matter as well as the alterations we make to these transformations which modify the social institutions as well as the customs (Kurki, 2008). In the ancient times the available technology was simplistic and so was the society living during this time. Labour was also manual and the main source of production happened to be the family. This society depended heavily on manpower as well as power from the animals where this kind of production was mainly for consumption at the family level as no surplus was produced. There was hardly any business being transacted during this period as production was not for economic gain. In the mid 1880’s the industrialization around the world commenced (Olson, 1963). Human beings began working on a mission to control the environment instead of being controlled by the environment. This changed the social system around the world in that the society became complex giving rise to specialization and division of labour. The social system changed in that there were inequalities in terms of difference in the possessions of wealth where some people were wealthy as opposed to others (Kurki, 2008).
Improvement in technology meant that the political structures had to change as the presence of political leaders was needed to ensure that the wealth created was managed well to ensure fair distribution of resources (McMichael, 2004). This then gave rise to the political class leading to the rise of new political structures like the rise of kingdoms that were led by the King. The world market was also introduced and hence people could trade globally. The improvement in transport and communication technology meant that people could move any where in the world and influence the people they found inhabiting the areas that they had moved to. It is this kind of movement which leads to international change in the international world (Olson, 1963).
Education
According to Garvin (1993) as much as the family plays a big part in influencing a child’s behaviour, education plays a huge part in influencing social change around the world. This takes place through two ways one education plays the role of socializing, as well as moulding individuals to grow according to societal wants. Education also imparts skills in individuals which can be applied by the beneficiary of these skills to improve ones economic social standing. Through education people learn skills in life in terms of how they should lead their lives through socializing. It is also through education that people interact with people from diverse culture and thus learning other people’s culture thus causing change in the social world. Values like honesty are also taught in schools as well as values like high moral standards leading to development of a well moulded individual who can impact the world for example leaders like the US former president Bill Clinton (McMichael, 2004).
Conclusion
There is no doubt that changes in the world are inevitable. The main factor contributing to this is globalization where the world has become one global village. Changes taking place anywhere in the world will influence the world and cause transformation in the world. There are various contributing factors of change in the world which include religion, culture, education, technology and so on. Changes are always taking place and influencing everyone in the world. It is imperative for the policy makers to stay alive to these changes to ensure that they formulate policies in line with these changes.
References
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