Un movimiento social es un grupo no formal de individuos u organizaciones que tiene como finalidad el cambio social. Durante el siglo XIX, el concepto de movimiento social estaba ligado a un tipo de cambio social particular (revolucionario) y a un fin específico (la instauración de un régimen socialista o comunista), así como a una identidad en concreto (identidad de clase) y a un grupo social en particular (la clase obrera). A lo largo del siglo XX, el término comenzó a utilizarse para englobar movimientos que se sitúan en muy diferentes contextos, en esferas tan distintas como la cultural, social, política, económica o personal, y cuya composición incluye a clases, sectores o colectivos como obreros, campesinos, mujeres, estudiantes, vecinos y grupos étnicos.

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Social movements are a type of group action. They are large, sometimes informal, groupings of individuals or organizations which focus on specific political or social issues. In other words, they carry out, resist, or undo a social change. Modern Western social movements became possible through education (the wider dissemination of literature) and increased mobility of labor due to the industrialization and urbanization of 19th century societies. It is sometimes argued that the freedom of expression, education and relative economic independence prevalent in the modern Western culture are responsible for the unprecedented number and scope of various contemporary social movements. However, others point out that many of the social movements of the last hundred years grew up, like the Mau Mau in Kenya, to oppose Western colonialism. Either way, social movements have been and continued to be closely connected with democratic political systems. Occasionally social movements have been involved in democratizing nations, but more often they have flourished after democratization. Over the past 200 years, they have become part of a popular and global expression of dissent. Modern movements often utilize technology and the internet to mobilize people globally. Adapting to communication trends is a common theme among successful movements. Research is beginning to explore how advocacy organizations linked to social movements in the U.S. and Canada use social media to facilitate civic engagement and collective action. Political science and sociology have developed a variety of theories and empirical research on social movements. For example, some research in political science highlights the relation between popular movements and the formation of new political parties as well as discussing the function of social movements in relation to agenda setting and influence on politics.

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