Redefining the field of social movements.

Social movements such as environmentalism, feminism, nationalism, and the anti-immigration movement are a prominent feature of the modern world and have attracted increasing attention from scholars in many countries. Comparative Perspectives on Social Movements, first published in 1996, brings together a set of essays that focus upon mobilization structures and strategies, political opportunities, and cultural framing and ideologies. The essays are comparative and include studies of the former Soviet Union and eastern Europe, the United States, Italy, the Netherlands, and Germany. Their authors are amongst the leaders in the development of social movement theory and the empirical study of social movements.

"Understanding Social Movements offers a multidisciplinary introduction to the study of social and cultural protest and contentious politics. It combines a theoretical perspective and with a fascinating array of case studies. It covers religious movements; social welfare movements; struggles over space; law, crime and social movements; and media and movements. Other sections of the book discuss the origins of social movement studies and historical perspectives, social movements and political processes, new social movements, identity and cultural politics, and virtual networking and cyber protest. Case studies include the US civil rights movement, anti-globalization campaigns, and include further material from Europe, China, Latin America, Africa, India and the Middle East"--

"Supporting a Movement for Health and Health Equity" is the summary of a workshop convened in December 2013 by the Institute of Medicine Roundtable on the Promotion of Health Equity and the Elimination of Health Disparities and the Roundtable on Population Health Improvement to explore the lessons that may be gleaned from social movements, both those that are health-related and those that are not primarily focused on health. Participants and presenters focused on elements identified from the history and sociology of social change movements and how such elements can be applied to present-day efforts nationally and across communities to improve the chances for long, healthy lives for all. The idea of movements and movement building is inextricably linked with the history of public health. Historically, most movements - including, for example, those for safer working conditions, for clean water, and for safe food - have emerged from the sustained efforts of many different groups of individuals, which were often organized in order to protest and advocate for changes in the name of such values as fairness and human rights. The purpose of the workshop was to have a conversation about how to support the fragments of health movements that roundtable members believed they could see occurring in society and in the health field. Recent reports from the National Academies have highlighted evidence that the United States gets poor value on its extraordinary investments in health - in particular, on its investments in health care - as American life expectancy lags behind that of other wealthy nations. As a result, many individuals and organizations, including the Healthy People 2020 initiative, have called for better health and longer lives.

Social Movements cleverly translates the art of collective action and mobilization by excluded groups to facilitate understanding social change from below. Students learn the core components of social movements, the theory and methods used to study them, and the conditions under which they can lead to political and social transformation. This fully class-tested book is the first to be organized along the lines of the major subfields of social movement scholarship—framing, movement emergence, recruitment, and outcomes—to provide comprehensive coverage in a single core text. Features include: use of real data collected in the U.S. and around the world the emphasis on student learning outcomes case studies that bring social movements to life examples of cultural repertoires used by movements (flyers, pamphlets, event data on activist websites, illustrations by activist musicians) to mobilize a group topics such as immigrant rights, transnational movement for climate justice, Women's Marches, Fight for $15, Occupy Wall Street, Gun Violence, Black Lives Matter, and the mobilization of popular movements in the global South on issues of authoritarian rule and neoliberalism With this book, students deepen their understanding of movement dynamics, methods of investigation, and dominant theoretical perspectives, all while being challenged to consider their own place in relation to social movements.

First published in 1990, Ideology and the New Social Movements provides an incisive and much-needed assessment of debates concerning the nature and motivation of social movements and collective action. In particular, Alan Scott focuses upon the competing theoretical explanations of the rise and character of the ‘new social movements’ in North America and Europe. After introducing the major themes in the debate about new social movements, the book reviews mainstream theories, both functionalist and neo-Marxist, then moves on to a discussion of sociological, economic and political writings. Specific examples, most notably the rise of the West German Greens, are used to assess the value of the different approaches. Alan Scott argues that theories of long-term change, such as the transition to the ‘post-industrial’ society, give insufficient attention to the political and organizational aspects of social movements, and exaggerate the differences between older, class based, movements and ‘new’ politics. He concludes by arguing that the idea of social closure that can accommodate questions of allegiance and identity, and control of resources has considerable explanatory power, and can encompass the cultural and political aspects of social movements. This book will be of interest to students of sociology, political science and urban studies.

The social scientific study of social movements remains largely shaped by categories, concepts and debates that emerged in North Atlantic societies in the late 1960s and early 1970s, namely resource mobilization, framing, collective identity, and new social movements. It is now, however, increasingly clear that we are experiencing a profound period of social transformation associated with online interactivity, informationalization and globalization. Written by leading experts from around the world, the chapters in this book explore emerging forms of movement and action not only in terms of the industrialized countries of the North Atlantic, but recognizes the importance of globalizing forms of action and culture emerging from other continents and societies. This is the first book to bring together key authors exploring this transformation in terms of action, culture and movements. It not only engages with critical transformations in the nature of collective action, but also makes a significant contribution to the globalizing of sociology.