Resource Mobilization Theory (RMT)
Resource Mobilization Theory (RMT) plays a vital role in analyzing how social movements mobilize and deploy resources to actualize their goals. The theory aims at providing a framework for analyzing how social movements are able to overcome prevailing patterns of resource inequality in their efforts to pursue social change (Edwards and McCarthy: 118). This theory has been used to analyze different social movements in history. Edwards (2007) writes that Resource Mobilization Theory can be used to describe how social movements turn bystanders into adherents and subsequently adherents into constituents. In this case, adherents are the individuals who share the social movement organization vision of social change. Constituents on the other hand are those who contribute resources of various kinds to help the movement mobilize. Bystanders are those who watch from the sidelines.
This theory has attracted a lot of contributions from different scholars such as Jo Freeman, Charles Tilly, John McCarthy, Mayer Zald and Bob Edwards amongst many more others. For the sake of this paper, Bob Edwards and John McCarthy’s framework which is documented in their work “Resources and Social Movement Mobilization (2004)”will be used.
Their framework encompasses an analysis of resource inequality among social movements, resource redistribution, typologies of resources, key resource attributes, sources of resources and finally resource mobilization processes.
Resource Inequality
The first aspect of their framework entails resource inequality where they argue that social movements have unequal access to resources. They posit three reasons why this happens. They are due to spatial variations, historical variations and ...
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...ermining whether a SMO depends on beneficiary or conscience constituents, or between internal and external sources.
Mobilizing activism is also a key activity in the mobilization process. There two types of mobilization: consensus mobilization and action mobilization. Consensus mobilization refers to the process of turning bystanders and opponents into adherents while action mobilization refers to the process or turning constituents into all kinds of adherents.
The last strategy that SMOs use to mobilize resources is through the use of collaborative actions. These happens when they organize events that are geared towards attracting more resources for the SMO by aggregating the human and financial resources available to the SMO. Examples of such events include popular runs and walks where participants contribute money and generate a greater commitment to a cause.
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