Political Generations, Micro-Cohorts, and the Transformation of Social Movements

Abstract

In this paper the author proposes a generational model of continuity and change in social movements. Building on political generation and cohort replacement theories, he offers three propositions about generational processes in social movements : (1) the collective identity of an activist cohort remains consistent over time, contributing to movement continuity; (2) cohorts construct different collective identities based on the external contexts and internal conditions of the movement at the time they enter; (3) cohort replacement contributes to change in social movements. These three generational processes interact with organizational factors and political opportunity structures to shape movement continuity and change. He illustrates these propositions by drawing on an in-depth case study of the women's movement from 1969 to 1992 in Columbus, Ohio, and he suggests key questions about generational processes in other cases