Conclusions and Discussion: Rural Social Movements in the Context of Rural Development Paradigm Shift

Abstract

In the concluding chapter of this monograph, the reader will find summarizing conclusions and insightful discussion concerning the rural social movements and emerging rural development paradigm shift in light of the transition from industrial to the post-industrial phase of society’s development, based on implemented qualitative investigations in the book. The chapter starts with the newly made insights from old and new social movement theories and approaches and their use and limitations in the analysis of todays’ change-focused post-industrial social movements. The central idea of the monograph—paradigm innovations, are put into the discussion concerning the ongoing rural development paradigm shift in the twenty-first century. The proposed concluding reasoning highlight the consistency of paradigm innovations, the importance of top-down and bottom-up actors as agents of change, their features, global and local acting environment and the relevance of the impact made by rural social movements and their actors towards overall rural development in the light of rural development paradigm shift.