Individual and collective action

Index

In any social movement, targeted actions are taken by individuals, groups, and  organizations to achieve change that addresses a shared concern or desired change. In this section, you will learn about the components of individual and collective action and some strategies on how to get started.  

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What is this element?

“Individual and collective action” describes the intentional and purposeful steps taken by committed change agents, groups and other individuals to achieve shared goals (Bate et al., 2004a).

It occurs through mobilization – the process in which change agents, groups and others commit and act together in a coordinated manner in the pursuit of achieving change (Bate et al., 2004a; Carson-Stevens et al., 2013; Herechuk et al., 2010).

Change agents, groups and others can mobilize to implement best practices related to evidence uptake and sustainability. Their actions taken are strategic to realize a vision or goal, such as to achieve excellence in health outcomes or patient safety.  

To take individual or collective action, change agents, groups and others must be committed to a shared concern or desired change and be ready to take action. This requires agency, or the ability to choose to take action. Agency is activated when an individual uses their power – the capacity to take action – combined with their courage – the presence of emotional resources to face the barriers or challenges that are a part of a change process – to achieve change (Hilton and Anderson, 2018). 

Change agents
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Accelerate Your Success: The Knowledge-to-Action Framework’s “Select, tailor and implement interventions” action cycle phase includes strategies for how to choose implementation interventions to effect change. This includes factors such as the local context, the desired change outcome (e.g., a practice change) and the assessment of barriers and facilitators. 

Why is this element important?

As a result of individual and collective action, the shared concern or desired change is addressed – and ideally resolved – according to the goals of the movement (Klaus and Saunders, 2016; Tremblay et al., 2018).

Individual and collective action functions as a tie that bonds people. Sharing experiences builds a feeling of commitment that helps to sustain their active engagement in the change (Embry and Grossman, 2006).    

Remember: The goal of any social movement is to mobilize individual and collective action. Without individual and/or collective action, there is no social movement .(Cases-Cortes et al., 2008)

Examples of individual and collective action activities

Individual and collective action activities are specific to a local context and to the goals of the social movement. That means that there is no set list that will apply to all situations. 

We share examples of collective action activities here to support understanding and generate ideas:  
 

To support dissemination:

  • Hold promotional activities to introduce the social action movement to staff.
  • Set up an in-person or virtual information stall with posters and leaflets.
  • Send champions and other informal peer leaders to different units to talk to staff. 
  • Disseminate newsletters detailing activities and updates.
  • Engage social media and local media outlets to gain visibility.

To engage partners and others:

  • Host fun events to drive staff interest.
  • Hold a “go-live” day as an official kick off to your change initiative.
  • Meet with community groups.
  • Hold public meetings, rallies or protests to raise more general awareness and disrupt norms.
  • Design and host education sessions to learn new knowledge and skills.

To engage collective action beyond a local context:

  • Participate locally in a change process that is having a global launch. Organize a local launch to motivate participation and change. 

SOURCES: Carson-Stevens et al., 2013; Embry and Grossman, 2006; Lippman et al., 2013; Wynn et al., 2011.

Case studies

The Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (RNAO) has engaged in grassroots mobilization for more than two decades with thousands of members and other supporters taking individual and collective action. This collective action begins with capacity-building events such as knowledge exchange meetings or other sessions to inform on and debate health policies. RNAO recognizes that evidence alone cannot make change – individual and collective action is required. 

Injection Services
Advocating for supervised injection services to save lives

RNAO supports making harm reduction services available for people who use substances as a means of saving lives, reducing stigma and building healthy communities. As part of this work, RNAO advocates for using evidence to inform policy in the area of supervised injection services.

When the only supervised injection services site in Canada faced threats of closure by the federal government, RNAO mobilized by engaging members’ support, the media and the public. As part of a coalition, RNAO and others advocated for and participated in a hearing before the Supreme Court of Canada.

As a result of the evidence on the benefits of harm reduction and public interventions advocating for the continued access to supervised injection services, the court ruled that the site should remain open. The victory led to the groundwork for additional supervised injection services to open in other provinces across Canada, including Ontario (Grinspun et al., 2018a).     

RNAO
Queens Park Day
Promoting healthy public policy through mobilized collective actions

Through two annual initiatives – Queen’s Park on the Road and Queen’s Park Day – RNAO members meet with members of provincial parliament (MPPs) from all of the political parties to promote healthy public policy and nursing services. Through direct engagement and advocacy with MPPs, RNAO has mobilized collective action for policy initiatives addressing areas such as poverty reduction, the use of pesticides for cosmetic use, promoting refugee health and protecting the safety and security of residents in long-term care (Grinspun et al., 2018a).       

Ontario
childhood obesity
Mobilizing community engagement to sustain a childhood obesity prevention initiative

A community initiative called Sustainable Childhood Obesity Prevention through Community Engagement (SCOPE) provides an example of collective action in the context of public health.

In the SCOPE public health initiative, the community formed a coalition with local partners such as libraries and primary care offices to take collective action for the prevention of childhood obesity. Together, they participated in a range of collective action activities, including: presentations and events promoting healthy eating choices, stakeholder engagement, resource development and policy and practice change (Kennedy et al., 2019a). 

British Columbia

Individual and collective action – what is needed?

Five key components are needed to mobilize individual and collective action. 

Five key components are needed to mobilize individual and collective action.

A “bottom-up” or grassroots pressure for change

  •  A “bottom-up” or grassroots initiative is one that is people-led.
  • Individuals, as change agents, are engaged in action in response to a shared concern and/or strongly desired change that directly or indirectly affects them and that they believe needs to be changed (e.g., stopped, sped up, and/or improved).
  • They may be in informal roles of power lacking status and authority; however, because they are affected by the shared concern or a desired change, they have a high level of interest in finding solutions.    
  • This approach to change differs from a traditional ‘top-down’ one in which formal leaders (e.g., senior management teams or those with power, status and authority) lead or download a planned change initiative with a varying degree of input or decision-making from point of care staff. Staff’s participation is determined by formal leaders and may include the use of steps, such as coercion, rewards, recognition, or avoiding punishment as external sources of motivation to support change.
  • The actions taken are intentional and directed at applying pressure to a situation or issue that has been building over time towards the change; actions are also taken to create solutions or new ways of being.

SOURCES: Bibby et al., 2009; Burbidge, 2017; Campbell, 2020; del Castillo et al., 2016; Grinspun, 2018; Hilton and Anderson, 2018.

Individual and collective sense of agency – I/We can make a difference!

Defining individual and collective agency

Individual agency is made up of:

  1. the power or capacity to be able to think and take action autonomously, and make choices to change outcomes
  2. the belief in having the ability and resilience to achieve and expand possibilities, and address and equalize power imbalances
  3. the courage to take action in an attempt to reach goals and change outcomes
  • Collective agency involves people acting together for a shared cause and using their combined individual agency or power and courage to achieve change. 
  • Agency is the power and courage to create experiences and outcomes beyond those determined by social structures.
    • Agency does not occur in isolation but can be influenced by factors including gender, class, ethnicity and institutions such as governments. These social structures can shape individuals’ thoughts, values, behaviours, experiences and choices over their lifetime. 
    • For example, an older person may believe they have less power in society because of their age, as defined by social structures that emphasize and favour youth. 

Individual and collective agency in social movement 

  • Agency is needed because individuals, groups and others must believe that change is possible and that it will occur as a result of their combined actions, power and courage.
  • The power of values, evidence and courage can be key motivators for change agents to speak out leading them to take action such as advocating and protecting the rights and needs of persons and their families to create improved health outcomes. 
  • When individual and collective agency is present, it is more likely that change will occur and happen more quickly with bigger results.  
  • A social movement is fueled by the shared positive energy of people and their ability to engage in individual and collective action and access the resources needed for change.

SOURCES: Bevan et al., 2011; Bibby et al., 2009; Burbidge, 2017; Grinspun, 2016; Grinspun, 2017b; Grinspun, 2018; Hilton and Anderson, 2018; Tushabe, 2016; University of Michigan School of Nursing, 2020.

Active engagement of change agents and others

  • Believe that change can be achieved and is more powerful when people combine their efforts and work together.  
  • Seek to include people who are directly and indirectly impacted by the shared concern or a strong desire for change. They will be more invested about the cause and outcomes if they are personally affected.
  • Recognize that change requires a high level of energy, especially where there are barriers or resistance to change. Avoid working in isolation. Recognize and acknowledge the power and results achieved through shared purpose and collaboration.   
  • Co-design the change with change agents, staff and others.

SOURCES: Bate et al., 2004a; Bibby et al., 2009; Carson-Stevens et al., 2013, Klaus and Saunders, 2016; Tremblay et al., 2018.

Presence of social ties amongst movement members

  • The success of a social movement can be predicted in part by whether change agents have developed bonds or social ties with one another and have developed a shared or collective identity.  
  • Social ties reinforce participants’ commitment to the shared concern or the strong desire for change and to one another as partners in the change. 
  • Change agents are influenced – or perhaps even pressured – by one another to continue involvement in the social movement, because of their social ties and commitment to the opportunities, concerns and passions about the change needed.

SOURCES: Bate et al., 2004a; Serna Restrepo et al., 2018.

Resources

  • To succeed, individual and collective action require a critical mass of committed and motivated people committed to working together to achieve change.
  • Support structures, including informal networks and core leadership structures, are also needed. Informal networks act as points of connection amongst change agents and others. Core leadership structures such as change teams and steering committees support the social movement as it evolves. 

SOURCES: Bate et al., 2004a; Embry and Grossman, 2006.

“Leaders must know how to mobilize and deploy resources in ways that translate strategy into action. Commitments from movement members – time, skills, and effort – are essential to collective action.” (del Castillo et al., 2016)

Considerations for getting started

To get started with individual and collective action, some strategies are provided below. We categorize the suggestions according to the five key components described above.  

A “bottom-up” pressure for change

  • Invite people who are interested in the shared concern or have a strong desire for change to a roundtable meeting to generate ideas and start building support and engagement.  
  • Use consensus to develop the shared purpose of the social movement. 
  • Seek informal and formal leaders with the capacity to engage in change.
  • Take action early to build momentum once the shared concern or desired change has been determined and there is a readiness for change. For example, share information with others who are not engaged in the social movement to start building a broader base of support.
  • Think strategically about the timing of the change; for example, the publication of new evidence such as a new guideline can act as a catalyst for change and prompt a push for action in response.

Individual and collective sense of agency – I/We can make a difference!

  • Commit to changing the workplace culture and practice to support the development of frontline staff as informal leaders who engage in creating or co-designing change. Recognize that workplace culture itself leads to the creation of both informal and formal leaders and their dynamics.
  • Seek to share power, using democratic processes and consensus to determine strategies for individual and collective action.
  • Recognize and celebrate individual and collective agency in cases when small wins are achieved and progress is made.  

Support people to remain actively engaged

  • Identify and prioritize what is most important to participants in the social movement.
  • Use framing – or positioning the shared concern or desired change – in ways that connect “hearts and minds” to support the change as credible and meaningful.
  • Engage voting mechanisms such as dot voting to gauge relevance, impact and other components of the change. 
  • Chart a course to monitor achievements or challenges. 
  • Make sure the steps you take fit with the local culture.
  • Keep supporters up to date with regular communication.

Presence of social ties amongst participants

  • Focus on building connections and relationships with other change agents. Be transparent, be positive about the change, and communicate trustworthiness to strengthen social ties.
  • Bring people together – in face-to-face meetings if possible – to build knowledge, supportive relationships and a shared purpose.
  • Recognize the power of an existing shared sense of identity among groups. Harness collective identity to support collective action, where it aligns with the goals of the social movement. 
  • Encourage change agents to act in solidarity with one another.  
  • Recognize the value of supportive allies and welcome them to join the social movement.

Resources

  • People: Find other individuals, groups, and networks whose goals align with yours. Join forces to build a critical mass of supporters.
  • Material resources: Determine availability and accessibility of resources. If additional funds are needed to support the change initiative, seek organizational support. Consider the timing of requesting funds with organizational annual budgets.

SOURCES: Arnold et al., 2018; Casas-Cortés et al., 2008; del Castillo et al., 2016; Elsey, 1998; Kapilashrami et al., 2016; Herechuk et al., 2010; Waring and Crompton, 2017.

Navigating common problems

The below lists a few common causes of why collective action activities may slow or stop, and provides suggestions for how you and your change team can respond.

Common problem

Lack of support

  • A lack of support and unwillingness to participate in the social movement leads to a reduction in collective action efforts. Similarly, apathy can hinder or limit collective action efforts. This may be due to uncertainty or a lack of agreement regarding the shared concern or desired change, or in the role and agency of frontline staff as informal leaders and change agents.
  • If individuals or groups feel the social movement is a gimmick or not new, or they perceive the social movement as not credible or valuable, they may limit their participation or openly criticize collective action.
Strategies to address the problem
  • Seek to understand the concerns of individuals about taking action.
  • Consider reframing the shared concern or desired change to make it more meaningful to others, and use change agents and other influencers to build support and momentum.
  • Reconsider timing if support remains low due to competing priorities.
Common problem

Limited engagement by change agents. Change agents self-determine their level of engagement. This can be reduced for many reasons. Some examples:

  • the social movement may still be at an early stage  
  • there is a lack of clarity regarding how to get involved
  • it is unclear whether all change agents are welcomed and encouraged to get involved and be part of the change 
  • emerging leadership of change agents is not fostered
  • the social movement lacks strategic direction
  • the social movement is in appearance only, with roles and leadership of change agents limited to those determined by others, such as senior management teams
Strategies to address the problem
  • Be inclusive and welcome anyone who is interested in getting involved and being a change agent.
  • Develop a list of actions that change agents can take.
Common problem

Limits to individual and/ or collective agency.

  • Individuals may want to take action, but do not know how to advocate for a cause or are fearful of publicly taking action due to perceived or actual risks. This may stem from their personal experiences of lacking power due to disenfranchisement or discrimination. 
  • Individuals may be resistant to take individual and collective action, because of fear of uncertainty, ridicule, rejection, or possible losses (for example, job loss).
Strategies to resolve the problem
  • Remember that personal conviction or intrinsic motivation is more important than formal skills or positional power. Don’t worry if you lack skills or a formal job title.
  • Be aware that many social movements have been led by people who are motivated by a strong personal mission.
  • Strive to be as transparent as possible regarding any potential risks involved with engaging in individual and collective action.

SOURCES: Bibby et al., 2009; Carson-Stevens et al., 2013; Hilton and Anderson, 2018; Waring and Crompton, 2017; White, 2001; Wynn et al., 2011. 

Check your progress

  • You have determined the priorities regarding the shared concern or desired change of change agents and key stakeholders. This may include their opinions about what needs to continue or be stopped, or where you need to generate new ideas.
  • Change teams and change agents are demonstrating their commitment to the social movement verbally and through their actions.
  • Individual and collective action activities are occurring, and the energy of change agents and others are visible and palpable.   
  • You have gained access to resources to support change, and promote a sense of agency and shared leadership.
  • You revise actions through a collaborative process when needed.
  • The knowledge of change agents and others about collective action is expanding to support the ongoing social movement.
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SOURCES: Bate et al., 2004a; Bibby et al., 20909; Carson-Stevens et al., 2013; Herechuk et al., 2010.

Implementation tools

Linking this element to other components in the toolkit

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Linking this key characteristic to other elements of the Social Movement Action Framework: 

Each of the elements of the Social Movement Action (SMA) Framework is dynamic and interrelated. For example, collective action addresses an urgent need for action and receptivity to change. It applies the strategy of framing to position the issue and the urgent need for change through collective action. Change agents and other supporters take action in part through the engagement of hearts and minds that reflect their intrinsic motivation. As a result of the experiences of collective action, change agents feel a sense of belonging and community which furthers their sense of collective identity. Change agents and change teams demonstrate their emerging leadership through collective action. These individuals and groups may be connected with others through networks and may have core leadership structures to support their collective efforts as the social movement evolves. By mobilizing and using the energy as fuel for collective action, momentum is created. 

Linking this key characteristic to the action cycle phases of the Knowledge-to-Action Framework:

You and your change team’s capacity in social movement actions may be enhanced or accelerated by the addition of some of the action cycle phases of the Knowledge-to-Action (KTA) Framework, as the two frameworks are complementary. In addition to the linking example described earlier in this section, there can be many other points of connection between the two frameworks. Here are three examples for you to consider:   

  • Adapt knowledge to local context: Funding, time and human resources are needed to drive and nourish individual and collective action. The KTA Framework’s phase of assessing the number of resources that can be dedicated to the social movement can help you and your change team understand whether goals and aspirations can be realistically achieved given the availability of resources. Assessing which resources the change agents can access in their settings can help you maximize existing resources, and potentially obtain more resources.
  • Select, tailor and implement interventions: Individual and collective action exist to mobilize and achieve shared goals. Incorporating the select, tailor and implement intervention phase of the KTA action cycle can facilitate the coordinated steps change agents take throughout the social movement.
  • Monitor knowledge use: It will be important to monitor how change agents are using the knowledge and information in their individual or collective action. For instance, how are change agents (individually and/or collectively) using the knowledge they have about the change when they share information in social media, promote awareness through local seminars, and meet with stakeholders?

For more discussion about the dynamic links between the elements of the SMA Framework and the KTA Framework, see the section "Two complementary frameworks". 

More resources

Individual and collective action

Mobilization

Advocates For Youth, 2014

A short discussion paper on best practice strategies to support community mobilization including engaging diverse organizations, develop a shared vision, and create a strategic plan. 

Analyzing healthcare coordination using translational mobilization (Allen, 2018) 

A framework for collective action and the conditions and actions needed to create change in complex organizational settings, including health care. The theory focuses on the collective action/what is being changed; the strategic action field/where the change is occurring; and how the change is being done/the mechanisms of mobilization. 

Collective agency

More Social Movement Action (SMA) Framework elements

The 16 elements of the Social Movement Action Framework are dynamic and inter-related. To learn more about two other elements, click the links below.