SP3195 Social Movements: Concept Map and 800-Word Analytical Commentary, University of Galway 2026

In this University of Galway assessment, students build a concept map of what makes a social movement according to three assigned readings, and then apply those characteristics to an Irish case: the November 2023 Dublin riots, the 2020-2021 Debenhams workers’ occupation or the 2026 hauliers’ and farmers’ fuel cost protests. The task is about definition and classification, not about why movements emerge or succeed.

Assigned Readings (the concept map must use these only)

• Snow, D. (2022) ‘Social movements’, in Snow et al. (eds) The Wiley-Blackwell Encyclopedia of Social and Political Movements. John Wiley and Sons Ltd.
• Snow, D.A., Soule, S.A., Kriesi, H. and McCammon, H.J. (eds) (2018) ‘Mapping and Opening up the Terrain’, The Wiley Blackwell Companion to Social Movements, Chapter 1, pp. 1-16.
• Diani, M. (1992) ‘The Concept of Social Movement’, The Sociological Review, 40(1), pp. 1-25.

Guiding question while reading: what characteristics would need to be present for a group, campaign, network or collective action to be considered a social movement according to this author? Look for continuity and shifts in emphasis between the two Snow texts.

Task 1: Concept Map

• Set out the defining characteristics of social movements from each reading.
• Show overlaps, differences and tensions between the authors.
• Use any digital tool (credited) or a hand-drawn, scanned map, and cite the source of every point, with page numbers for direct quotations.

Task 2: Analytical Commentary (800 words)

1. Narrate the concept map: how the authors define social movements, the key similarities and differences, and what separates social movements from other collective action, organisations, campaigns or political participation.
2. Pick one example and argue whether it is a social movement or another form of collective action, using the assigned readings for the criteria and media coverage only for background.

Case Options

• The Dublin Riots, November 2023
• The Debenhams Workers’ Occupation, 2020-2021 (406-day blockade over redundancy terms)
• Irish Hauliers’ and Farmers’ Fuel Cost Protests, 2026 (convoys, road blockades and urban demonstrations)

Grading Criteria (20 points each)

• Knowledge and understanding of social movement concepts
• Concept map: synthesis and visual representation
• Quality of analysis and comparative discussion
• Application of concepts to the chosen example
• Presentation, structure and referencing

Submit one document with the map and commentary to the Canvas assessment folder. The 800-word limit excludes the words in the visual and the reference list.

Get Expert Help with Your SP3195 Social Movements Assignment

The highest bands go to students who compare the readings rather than summarise them one after another. Diani’s synthesis of networks, shared identity and conflict is a useful anchor, and the two Snow texts let you show how the emphasis on organisation, duration and change-seeking aims has developed. When you apply the criteria, weigh each one against your case: duration and collective identity separate a one-off riot from a 406-day occupation or a coordinated sector protest.

Our write my sociology essay support can help you plan the map and commentary and get University of Galway Harvard referencing right. For related briefs, see the SOCY06010 applied sociology assessment, the introduction to sociology assignment brief and the POL1044 political ideologies group project.