  Ref: soc0002 There appears to be a
high level of consensus among European students of social movements
about trends in the recent past. Two parallel and opposed developments
have occurred. On one hand, labour movements, concerned to improve
workers' material conditions, have declined in significance. On the
other hand, new social movements, concerned with such oppressions as
those around gender, sexuality and race and with such pathologies of
modernity as militarism and environmental degradation, have become more
important. This consensus, which began to emerge in the early 1980s,
was not accidental. That period witnessed the rapid growth of peace
movements, and the increasing prominence of the Green movement in West
Germany and elsewhere. Around the same time most of the advanced
economies of Europe, North America, and Japan experienced significant
declines in levels of strike action. Reflecting on these dual and
opposing trends, social movement theorists sought explanations to
encompass both developments. Why were New Social Movements (NSMs)
becoming more important while labour movements were declining? Out of
their reflections, in an intellectual context marked by a discrediting
of traditional Marxism, there appeared a paradigmatic account, which
this article critically reviews.
The Paradigm Socio-economic Development Rationalization New Social Movements Beyond the Paradigm Analyzing Class and Social Movements An Example: Racism and British Trade Unionism Secular-Structural or Conjunctural Explanation? Roots of the Current Conjuncture The Return of Class? An Open Conclusion References How To Order 1. Select reference number soc0002 from the dropdown list 2. Click the PayPal button 3. Click the "Click Here" button on the PayPal page to submit your credit/debit card payment 4. We will email your chosen dissertation in PDF format within 24 hours |
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