How and why do people work collectively to promote (or prevent) social change? And when do social movements have political and cultural impacts? The purpose of this course is to familiarize students with foundational and cutting-edge answers to these questions as well as to the broader question of why understanding collective action and social movements matters. We will examine accounts of the factors influencing movements’ emergence, internal dynamics, and outcomes in conjunction with the over time development of social movement theory. As dissent takes many forms, we will also explore how these insights apply to collective action processes beyond protest. For instance, how mobilization processes are evident within diverse institutions and among diverse sets of actors, such as business groups, politicians, and media professionals. The course will be conducted in English. close