Critical mass (sociodynamics)

In social dynamics, critical mass is a sufficient number of adopters of an innovation in a social system so that the rate of adoption becomes self-sustaining and creates further growth. The term is borrowed from nuclear physics and in that field it refers to the amount of a substance needed to sustain a chain reaction. In social dynamics, critical mass is a sufficient number of adopters of an innovation in a social system so that the rate of adoption becomes self-sustaining and creates further growth. The term is borrowed from nuclear physics and in that field it refers to the amount of a substance needed to sustain a chain reaction. Social factors influencing critical mass may involve the size, interrelatedness and level of communication in a society or one of its subcultures. Another is social stigma, or the possibility of public advocacy due to such a factor. Critical mass may be closer to majority consensus in political circles, where the most effective position is more often that held by the majority of people in society. In this sense, small changes in public consensus can bring about swift changes in political consensus, due to the majority-dependent effectiveness of certain ideas as tools of political debate. Critical mass is a concept used in a variety of contexts, including physics, group dynamics, politics, public opinion, and technology. 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. The concept was first established (although not explicitly named) in Schelling's essay about racial segregation in neighborhoods, published in 1971 in the Journal of Mathematical Sociology, and later refined in his book, Micromotives and Macrobehavior, published in 1978. He did use the term 'critical density' with regard to pollution in his 'On the Ecology of Micromotives'. Mark Granovetter, in his essay 'Threshold models of collective behavior', published in the American Journal of Sociology in 1978 worked to solidify the theory. Everett Rogers later cites them both in his important work Diffusion of Innovations, in which critical mass plays an important role. The concept of critical mass had existed before it entered a sociology context. It was an established concept in medicine, specifically epidemiology, since the 1920s, as it helped to explain the spread of illnesses. It had also been a present, if not solidified, idea in the study of consumer habits and economics, especially in General Equilibrium Theory. 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. Similarly, Granovetter cited the Nash Equilibrium game in his papers. Finally, Herbert A. Simon's essay, 'Bandwagon and underdog effects and the possibility of election predictions', published in 1954 in Public Opinion Quarterly, has been cited as a predecessor to the concept we now know as critical mass. Critical mass and the theories behind it help us to understand aspects of humans as they act and interact in a larger social setting. Certain theories, such as Mancur Olson's Logic of Collective Action or Garrett Hardin's Tragedy of the Commons, work to help us understand why humans do or adopt certain things which are beneficial to them, or, more importantly, why they do not. Much of this reasoning has to do with individual interests trumping that which is best for the collective whole, which may not be obvious at the time.