The Emergence of Social Movements - Renewal Request

University Of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh PA

Investigators

Abstract

SES-0416500 Kathleen Blee University of Pittsburgh This project continues a NSF-funded pilot project to examine the formation of groups that propose collective action for social change, here termed emerging social movement groups. (ESMGs). It follows the dictum of social movement scholar Alberto Melucci that [t]he empirical unity of a social movement should be considered a result rather than a starting point, a fact to be explained rather than something already evident. Using the framework of time-geography and its applications in the study of place, this project analyzes the processes that underlie the emergence of social movements in the U.S. today. In most studies, a social movement group is selected for study when it is fairly unified, at the stage when it is most visible to researchers. At this point, a group generally has some coherence: a shared range of ideas or ideologies, interpersonal routines, and a definable organization. In contrast to the standard focus on established groups, this project examines ESMGs, defined as the vast population of tiny or incipient movements. This project will collect comparative data on a purposive sample of social movement groups in Pittsburgh. Data will be gathered through ethnographic observation of group events and meetings along with structured and unstructured interviews with movement participants, potential participants, and defecting members. The goals of the project are: (1) to identify the social processes within emerging social movement groups; and (2) to develop a set of testable propositions for future comparative research on social movement formation. Additionally, the study will explore the mechanisms that underlie civic participation and civic disengagement by analyzing what happens in groups that attempt to organize to challenge existing authorities. It also will address gaps in research on social movements and provide longitudinal data on social movements, multiple case studies within a single political field, the inclusion of conservative and right wing social movements, and attention to the internal dynamics and tensions of social movement organizations. Broader impacts. The study will contribute to methodology and scientific knowledge about the internal processes of emergent social movements; (2) enhance student training and research through the incorporation of undergraduate interns, including those from under-represented groups in the research, the development of a graduate seminar and an undergraduate course using data collected in this study, and the distribution of data on local emergent social movements for student papers, theses, and dissertations; and (3) disseminate findings to both academic and non-academic audiences interested in understanding how to stimulate robust and diverse involvement in movements for social change.