Ogburn's Theory Essay

Social change is a topic sociologists have always been intrigued by, and theorists have determined four main arguments as to why and how these transitions occur. The first process identified is the evolution from a lower civilization to a higher civilization. This can occur in a unilinear or multilinear format. Unilinear evolution assumes all societies follow the same path from simple to complex forms. Lewis Morgan names the three stages all societies went through savagery, barbarism, and civilization based on the evolution of England. The multilinear facet of evolution states that no matter the path a society takes; it will always result in the same final result of civilization. This is described by the term cultural progress, or the
Within the theory are three main process: invention, discovery, and diffusion. Invention begins by combining existing elements of society to form a new creation. These new creations can be used to alter social life. These inventions can also be social inventions such as democracy and the civil rights movement. The second portion of Ogburn’s theory, discovery, is defined as a new way of seeing a part of the world. These discoveries have potential to shap life as we know it today, such as Columbus “discovering” America. These types of discovery also have a tremendous amount to do with timing. Although the Vikings discovered North America first, the world wasn’t ready for such a discovery, therefore, it went unnoticed. When these discoveries are timed correctly, the whole world sees it’s consequences whether positive or negative. The final process of Ogburn’s Theory, diffusion, describes the spread of an invention or discovery between places. These diffusions also have extensive effects of people’s lives. The spreading of these social ideas has the ability to transform life as we know it. These three processes are all subject to the concept of cultural lag, or the idea that elements of a civilizations culture are slow to change when compared to material