Essay on Sources of Social Change – Sociologists have been debating and discussing the question of the sources of social change. Cultural anthropologists are more interested in this topic. There are two groups among them (1) the diffusionists, and (2) inventionists.
1. According to the diffusionists, social or cultural change takes place due to cultural diffusion. Diffusion refers to the introduction of a behaviour modification from another culture. It denotes the spread of elements of culture, either singly or in a complex, from one local group to another local group. It is less frequently used to refer to dissemination within a group.
The argument of the diffusionists is that since inventions do not take place all the time and in all the societies in the same manner, every society borrows the cultural elements of another society for its progress directly or indirectly.
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They have cited the example of several tribes who could achieve progress by borrowing the cultural elements from the other groups. It takes very long time for a society to achieve progress if it fails to get profited by the achievements of others.
For example, the Maori people of New Zealand became civilised within one hundred years by borrowing many cultural elements from others. Thus, according to the diffusionists, the source of social change is to be found in cultural diffusion.
2. According to the inventionists, the source of social change is to be found in the inherent capacity of the people to make inventions. They have said that inventions constitute the major source of social change. Invention, whether in the field of social organisation or the cultural framework, refers to the rearrangement of known traits into new patterns or configurations.
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These inventions, whether material or non-material, have led to profound social changes. The invention of electricity, for example, has led to astounding changes in the fields of industry, agriculture, communication, transport and so on.
Inventionists have argued that it is wrong to assume that social change always takes place due to cultural diffusion. They have criticised the argument of diffusionists that many of the elements of South American culture have been borrowed from India, Egypt, Jawa, Polynesia and other places. They have contended that people are capable of initiating changes on their own.