Stages of Social Movements

Bureaucratization

"Formalization"

Decline

"Institutionalization"

Coalescence

"Popular Stage"

Bureaucratization

This is the third stage of a social movement, also known as "formalization". This is where political connections are made, trained staff are used, and it is ORGANIZED.

Factionalism

A situation in an organization where everybody is encouraged to take part in the decision making process, and the organization begins to be controlled by different factions that operate within the organization for the benefit of outside organizations.

Encapsulation

This is the process wherein a group of activists become isolated from the broader movement because they come to share many of the same habits and culture and their ideology becomes more similar to one another's and at the same time more rigid. They become so dedicated to the movement that they fail to sympathize with those who do not make the movement the dominant aspect of their life.

Repression

This is a type of Decline where authorities, or agents acting on behalf of the authorities, use measures (sometimes violent) to control or destroy a social movement.

Success

This is a type of Decline where the movement achieves its goals or compromises with the opposing side.

Failure

This is a type of Decline where the movement does not achieve its goals. Common failings are organization or strategic failings, or factionalism and encapsulation.

Co-optation

This is a type of Decline where the movement leaders come to associate with authorities or movement targets more than with the social movement constituents, in other words, the leadership is compromised.

Emergence

This is the first stage of a social movement. It is more talk that action, unorganized, the action is individual, and groups are not working together.

Decline

This is the forth and often last stage of a social movement, also known as "institutionalization". This is where the movement dies down because of repression, co-optation, success, failure, or establishment with mainstream.

Coalescence

This is the second stage of a social movement, also known as "popular stage". This is where groups come together, strategies form, leaders emerge, and goals are clarified.

Establishment with Mainstream

This is a type of Decline where a movement's goals or ideologies are adopted by the mainstream and there is no longer any need for a movement.