New York: Norton, 1978. Such function can be decelerating, where there is less utility per unit of resource, and in such a case, resource can taper off. Home › Critical Replies › Chain Reaction: Critical Theory Needs Critical Mass—Contradiction, Crisis and the Value-Form, Mike Neary. Paul A. Taylor is Senior Lecturer in Communications Theory, University of Leeds, UK. The concept of critical mass was originally created by game theorist Thomas Schelling and sociologist Mark Granovetter to explain the actions and behaviors of a wide range of people and phenomenon. Print. As analogy or metaphor the term has diffused into popular culture and social science and is widely used to refer to any context in which things change after a certain number of people get together or enter a setting. This means that for each new stage in a company’s growth there is a different and increasing critical mass … However, with interactive media, the interdependence was reciprocal, meaning both users influenced each other. [27] By obtaining critical mass in each relative population before advancing to the next audience, Facebook developed enough saturation to become self-sustaining. Akerlof, George A. In his papers, Schelling quotes the well-known "The Market for Lemons: Quality Uncertainty and the Market Mechanism" paper written in 1970 by George Akerlof. David, R., Aubert, B.A., Bernard, J-G., & Luczak-Roesch, M. (2020). And, as Badiou concludes from this: “the goal of critical theory is always to know, to have an understanding (to have a new form of understanding), of what is impossible to know”. [8] Similarly, Granovetter cited the Nash Equilibrium game in his papers. [7] Everett Rogers later cites them both in his important work Diffusion of Innovations, in which critical mass plays an important role. It had also been a present, if not solidified, idea in the study of consumer habits and economics, especially in General Equilibrium Theory. Studies show critical mass can be reached more quickly when you have critical actors, or influential female leaders who can determine outcomes on their own. The initial stages of Facebook had limited value to users due to the lack of network effects and critical mass. Another proposition suggests that a media's ease of use and inexpensiveness, as well as its utilization of an "active notification capability" will help it achieve universal access. The notion of critical theory has a general and a specific meaning (Maces 2001: 74f, Payne 1997: 118). c(henceforth just “critical mass”) is the minimum mass of fissile material that is needed for that chain reaction. n. 1. Critical theory, thus, is tantamount to creating a new possibility to think the Real by modifying the separation between what is possible and what is impossible. Paul A. Taylor and Jan Ll. Collective action usually depends on a "critical mass" that behaves differently from typical group members. Differentiation between earned income and assets is a fundamental lesson to learn when thinking in terms of critical mass. The term critical mass is borrowed from nuclear physics and in that field, it refers to the amount of a substance needed to sustain a chain reaction. Use the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Critical theory as a general term means theories that are critical of capitalism and domination. Finally, Markus posits that interventions, both monetarily and otherwise, by governments, businesses, or groups of individuals will help a media reach its critical mass and achieve universal access. The Critical Mass Theory, as well as the theories behind, is assisting the explaining and understanding of humans as they interact in society. The "Production Function" is the correlation between resources, or what individuals give in an effort to achieve public good, and the achievement of that good. When women reached 20% … Critical researchers link mass media and mass culture to a … This is due to the fact that interactive media have high network effect,[21] where in the value and utility of a good or service increases the more users it has. Pdf from Norges Handelshøyskole (NHH), the Norwegian School of Economics. [14][15] However, other research suggests lower numbers of women working together in legislature can also affect political change. Fourth, it is very helpful to have highly sought-after individuals to act as early adopters, as their use acts as incentive for later users. Paul A. Taylor and Jan Ll. The Wiley‐Blackwell Encyclopedia of Social and Political Movements. I f it seems like the structures that enable sexism are exploding, that’s because they scientifically are, according to the theory of critical mass. Logic of collective action and common good. These attributes have complex interactions and interdependencies. New York: The Free Press of Glencoe, 1962. “Bare” An article written in the early 1970s bemoaned the lack of critical mass of scholars studying collective behavior (Quarantelili & Weller 1974). The concept of critical mass had existed before it entered a sociology context. Critical mass for an innovation is the point at which its diffusion becomes self-sustaining and does not need to be supported by change agents or similar forces anymore. Evans, D. S., & Schmalensee, R. (2010). Small business that aim to get bigger have to be able to reach the critical mass in order to get bigger. We can especially feel and see the response to newer technology nowadays. Some come through studying social and political theory in the academy. It can also be driven by financial motives, such as greed in a rising house market. According to these theorists, a critical theory may be distinguished from a traditional theory according to a specific practical purpose: a theory is critical to the extent that it seeks human emancipation from slavery, acts as a libera… The under-representation of women on boards is a heavily discussed topic—not only in Germany. Critical researchers link mass media and mass culture to … 's terminology. Women Directors Make a Difference We find that women do make a difference in the boardroom. “Critical mass theory” in social movements refers loosely to any formal theory about how interdependent decisions accumulate into collective action or more narrowly to work in the tradition of Marwell and Oliver (1993). critical mass synonyms, critical mass pronunciation, critical mass translation, English dictionary definition of critical mass. Finally, Herbert A. Simon's essay, "Bandwagon and underdog effects and the possibility of election predictions", published in 1954 in Public Opinion Quarterly,[9] has been cited as a predecessor to the concept we now know as critical mass. Critical race theory (CRT) approaches issues such as justice, racism, and inequality, with a specific intent of reforming or reshaping society. [25] The principle behind the strategy is that at each time Facebook enlarged the size of the community, the saturation never drops below the critical mass, reaching the desired diffusion effect discussed in Rogers, Diffusion of innovations. On the other hand, the function can be accelerating, where the more resources that are used the bigger the payback. Women Directors Make a Difference We find that women do make a difference in the boardroom. Sometimes the critical “Critical mass theory” in social movements refers loosely to any formal theory about how interdependent decisions accumulate into collective action or more narrowly to work in the tradition of Marwell and Oliver (1993). The Frankfurt School's mass culture critical theory proves to be the most radical and severe one among the western mass culture critical theories. Critical mass, in nuclear physics, the minimum amount of a given fissile material necessary to achieve a self-sustaining fission chain reaction under stated conditions. Revolutionary theory is a tool for transformation, but to make it mass-based, popular education is necessary. Browse other articles of this reference work: The full text of this article hosted at iucr.org is unavailable due to technical difficulties. People can come to analysis and theory through different paths. In M. Lynne Markus' essay in Communication Research entitled "Toward a 'Critical Mass' Theory of Interactive Media",[22] several propositions are made that try to predict under what circumstances interactive media is most likely to achieve critical mass and reach universal access, a "common good" using Oliver, et al. A central concept of critical mass theory is the production functionthat is, a mathematical expression in the form of y = f(x) that gives the relationship between … These examples only outline the simplest ideal cases: A sphere gives the smallest M Schelling, Thomas C. Micromotives and Macrobehavior.