Value-added theory (also known as social strain theory) is a
sociological theory
A sociological theory is a that intends to consider, analyze, and/or explain objects of social reality from a sociological perspective,Macionis, John and Linda M. Gerber. 2010. ''Sociology'' (7th Canadian ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson ...
, first proposed by
Neil Smelser in 1962, which posits that certain conditions are needed for the development of a
social movement
A social movement is either a loosely or carefully organized effort by a large group of people to achieve a particular goal, typically a Social issue, social or Political movement, political one. This may be to carry out a social change, or to re ...
.
[Kendall, 2005]
Overview
Smelser porter considered social movements to be the side-effects of rapid
social change
Social change is the alteration of the social order of a society which may include changes in social institutions, social behaviours or social relations. Sustained at a larger scale, it may lead to social transformation or societal transformat ...
.
[Porta & Diani, 2006] He argued that six things were necessary and sufficient for
collective behavior
The expression collective behavior was first used by Franklin Henry Giddings and employed later by Robert Park and Ernest Burgess, Herbert Blumer, Ralph H. Turner and Lewis Killian, and Neil Smelser to refer to social processes and even ...
to emerge,
and that social movements must evolve through the following relevant stages:
[Sztompka, 2004]
* Structural conduciveness: the structure of society must be organized in such a way that certain protest actions become more likely.
* Structural strain: there must be a
strain on society that is caused by factors related to the structure of the current
social system
In sociology, a social system is the patterned network of relationships constituting a coherent whole that exist between individuals, groups, and institutions. It is the formal Social structure, structure of role and status that can form in a smal ...
, such as inequality or injustice, and existing power holders are unwilling or unable to address the problem.
* Generalized belief: the strain should be clearly defined, agreed upon, and understood by participants in group action.
* Precipitating factors: event(s) must occur that act as the proverbial spark that ignites the flame of action.
* Mobilization for action: participants must have a network and organization that allows them to take
collective action
Collective action refers to action taken together Advocacy group, by a group of people whose goal is to enhance their condition and achieve a common objective. It is a term that has formulations and theories in many areas of the social sciences ...
.
* Operation (failure) of social control: authorities either will or will not react. High levels of
social control
Social control is the regulations, sanctions, mechanisms, and systems that restrict the behaviour of individuals in accordance with social norms and orders. Through both informal and formal means, individuals and groups exercise social con ...
by those in power, like politicians or police, often makes it more difficult for social movements to achieve their goals.
In academia
The concept of
value added
Value added is a term in economics for calculating the difference between market value of a product or service, and the sum value of its constituents. It is relatively expressed by the supply-demand curve for specific units of sale. Value added ...
is also utilized in the field of
economics
Economics () is a behavioral science that studies the Production (economics), production, distribution (economics), distribution, and Consumption (economics), consumption of goods and services.
Economics focuses on the behaviour and interac ...
; in this case it refers to the total value of the revenue created by a product minus intermediate consumption.
Criticism
Critics of value-added theory note that it is overly focused on the
structural-functional approach because it views all strain on society as disruptive.
See also
*
Value theory
Value theory, also called ''axiology'', studies the nature, sources, and types of Value (ethics and social sciences), values. It is a branch of philosophy and an interdisciplinary field closely associated with social sciences such as economics, ...
*
Relative deprivation
Relative deprivation is the lack of resources to sustain the diet, lifestyle, activities and amenities that an individual or group are accustomed to or that are widely encouraged or approved in the society to which they belong. Peter Townsend, ''Po ...
*
Framing
*
Political opportunity
Political opportunity theory, also known as the political process theory or political opportunity structure, is an approach of social movements that is heavily influenced by political sociology. It argues that success or failure of social movement ...
*
Resource mobilization
Resource mobilization is the process of getting resources from the resource provider, using different mechanisms, to implement an organization's predetermined goals. It is a theory that is used in the study of social movements and argues that the ...
Notes
References
*
Piotr Sztompka in ''Shaping sociological imagination: The importance of theory'',
Jeffrey C. Alexander, Gary T. Marx, Christine L. Williams (ed.), ''Self, Social Structure, and Beliefs'', University of California Press, 2004,
Google Print, p.254* Diana Kendall, ''Sociology In Our Times'', Thomson Wadsworth, 2005,
Google Print, p.530*
Donatella della Porta, Mario Diani, ''Social Movements: An Introduction'', Blackwell Publishing, 2006,
Google Print, p.7
Further reading
*
Neil J. Smelser, ''Theory of collective behavior'', various, 1962
{{DEFAULTSORT:Value-Added Theory
Social movements
Sociological theories