Political Process Theory

Abstract

McAdam used the term “political process model” to designate the theory of movement emergence sketched in his 1982 book, Political Process and the Development of Black Insurgency, 1930–1970. In the book, he posed the theory as an alternative to two other perspectives. The first was what he referred to as the “classical strain model,” at the time best exemplified by the “collective behavior” perspective. But McAdam also critiqued and sought to distinguish his model from the newer resource mobilization framework. Over time the distinction between these two perspectives has been blurred by incorporating elements of both into a more general theoretical synthesis that emphasizes the simultaneous importance of “political opportunities,” “mobilizing ,” and “framing processes.”

From Resistance to Creation: Socio-Environmental Activism in Chile’s “Sacrifice Zones”

“…Considering this context, some studies from the region [12][13][14] have favored traditional social movement approaches to understand these conflicts. Such is the case of the Resource Mobilization Theory [15] and the Political Opportunities Framework [16], which focused on groups' resources, incentives, and opportunities leading to collective action [15,16]. From a different angle, recent scholarship understands the emergence of socio-environmental conflicts as being due to problems of governance [17,18], highlighting policies' failures in the distribution of revenues [19] or conflict management difficulties [20].…”

Civil Disobedience as Strategic Resistance in the US Immigrant Rights Movement

“…Theoretically there is a rich cross‐section of literature on political processes in social movements, though not necessarily focusing on legal status’s effect on an individual’s decision to take part in political activism (McAdam 2013). In this article we blend social movement literature and theories of civil disobedience in political science with scholarship on migrant illegality to centre the political subjectivity of the undocumented immigrant subject.…”

Social Movement Framing Tasks and Contemporary Racisms: Diagnostic and Prognostic Forms

“…collectively define their situations as unjust and subject to change through group action” (1982:51)—is a necessary component of social movements. This perception, he argues, is “the real catalyst of a movement” (McAdam 2013:1).…”

“…Just as resource mobilization theories have been criticized for being acultural, so too have theories of movements that center on changes in the "political opportunity structure"-that is, theories that center on social and institutional changes that open up possibilities for collective action in its various forms (McAdam 2013). The body of work spurred by this theoretical perspective has been criticized for being structurally deterministic, or at least inattentive to the subjective perception of opportunities movement participants must have to support their participation in a movement (Tarrow 1988).…”