What Kind Of Social Change Agent Are You?

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Dr. Terri Lyon is a licensed psychologist, professor, and the author of The Happy Activist. As the creator of the 5-Step Activism Path, she specializes in helping individuals achieve sustainable social change through a skills-based approach. Known as "The Activist for Activists," Terri is a dedicated environmental activist and animal lover who believes activism should motivate you, not drain you.

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Different Ways To Make Change

Activism and Volunteering

Grandfather showing granddaughter how to water a garden.

I define activism as influencing people to change their behavior. Instead of just educating someone about an issue, you encourage them to take action.

Volunteering is like activism in that it involves people spending their time in service of others. For example, cleaning litter from a stream is volunteering; advocating to change littering laws is activism.

Activism and social change are similar, so I use both terms.

Social entrepreneurs run businesses that have a profit motive, like Walden, but care about fairness and sustainability. Both social change and social entrepreneurship make change, but one has a profit component. Social entrepreneurship is a term that seems to encompass the idea of a B Corporation.

Is there a role for a for-profit university in social change? Based on my experience at Walden, the answer is yes. Another university, Ashoka, also trains students to be changemakers.

“We bring together social entrepreneurs, educators, businesses, parents & youth to support a world in which everyone is equipped & empowered to be a changemaker.”

It appears there are many ways individuals and groups can be problem-solvers for society’s good as a whole, rather than for what benefits them.

As a part of its social change mission, my university performs research on social change. In 2013, they published a social change impact report.

On my activism path, I explore the motivations behind activism and encourage you to examine your background and experiences. Were you raised by activists or in a family that did not volunteer? Perhaps your motivation isn’t about morals but instead about learning new things.

Here are the types of social change agents from the research.

Ultracommitted Change-Makers

First, Ultracommitted Change-Makers are dedicated, motivated, and make change a part of living their values. They were usually raised in a family that focused on activism.

Faith-Inspired Givers

In the second group, religion influences Faith-Inspired Givers. Their parents are likely to be inspired by faith as well. A moral responsibility to give back drives them.

Socially Conscious Consumers

Third are Socially Conscious Consumers. They seek the sustainability of products and services. They also expect vendors to be fair and responsible employers. When making purchasing decisions, they care about environmental and social justice issues.

Purposeful Participants

Fourth are Purposeful Participants. They tie their activism to external motivators, such as work initiatives and gaining new skills.

Casual Contributors

The fifth group, Casual Contributors, may see issues in their community but may not always act to change them. Many are older adults without children.

Finally, Social Change Spectators likely came from families that did not emphasize activism. They tend to see little relationship between their actions and change.

Where do you fit in as a social agent?

[Learn more about how to find your passion and change the world.]

Global Differences

One of the interesting parts of the survey results is how people from various countries differ on each question. For example, here are the responses to the question, “When it comes to positive social change, what are the areas or topics that are most important to you?”

What kind of social change agent are you? quiz results. what are the agents of social change, change agent in social work

The Student Activist

Cute girl with future leader shirt. A future change agent in social work.

The Ashoka organization believes that parents should be teaching change-making skills very early. They can develop skills to recognize problems and help solve them. And to know when they are the right person to step up. The parents of Ultracommitted Changemakers and Faith-Inspired Givers likely had parents who made this a part of their children’s lives.

Over the years, I’ve been impressed by students’ dedication to incorporating social change into their degree programs, particularly being a change agent in social work or a social entrepreneur. Many students enter school as social change agents. And others use their program to gain experience and set a direction for future social change work.

One of my students, a Buddhist Monk, pointed out that change can be spiritual, too:

“I define Spiritual Change as the ability to experience inner peace and fulfillment independent of one’s outer situations. When this happens, one becomes all the more empowered to bring about Social Change. The Buddha, Dr. Martin Luther King and Mahatma Gandhi are all examples of leaders whose initiatives for social change were primarily sourced in Spiritual change.”

What an interesting point. To be sure, religion and faith inspire social change calling for many people.

You as a Changemaker

Your background and family experiences may have influenced whether you have been a changemaker in the past. Also, your time, resources, and support influence how much changemaking can be a part of your life.

When you consider your ideal life, does your activism role look different from your quiz results? Perhaps consider incorporating activism into your life in a different way.

“Creating positive social change can occur on an individual, group, community, regional, national, and world level. We may think of social change in great world leaders or events. Still, social change begins with one individual committed to helping correct a social problem.” – Walden University

Learn more about Getting Started in Activism.

Focus your passion and find the cause closest to your heart among the myriad of causes.
Match your skills with the type of activism work that best suits you.
Find an activism opportunity that works for your life.
Determine if your social justice work truly makes an impact.
Stay motivated in your activism for the long-term.

It’s not too late to start. You can be a changemaker.

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Why is it important to identify a specific “type” of social change agent?

Identifying your social change agent type helps you match your unique skills to the cause closest to your heart. Statistics show that between 60% and 98% of people drop out of social change efforts, often because they end up doing work that does not align with their skills or motivation.

How do the social change archetypes fit into the larger 5-Step Activism Path?

Finding your social change agent type primarily addresses Step 2 (Inventory your skills) and Step 3 (Choose your Activism Method). Once you understand your social change agent type, you can customize your activism for better effectiveness and motivation.

Summary

I’ve designed this post to help you find exactly where you fit in the world of social change. By exploring different archetypes of social change agents, you can better understand how my 5-Step Activism Path makes activism feel both accessible and deeply sustainable. My goal is to help you match your natural talents and unique motivations to the causes you care about, ensuring your changemaking is effective and joyful rather than overwhelming.

What Kind Of Social Change Agent Are You?