The Circuit Rider Mounts
The Circuit Rider Mounts
Establishing Worth and the Birth of a Social Movement
This chapter discusses the inauspicious roots of the Circuit Rider movement, explaining how early adherents mobilized others by convincing them of the worth of information technology in the nonprofit sector. Mobilization was accomplished through the development and articulation of accounts, i.e., stories about the role of information technology for social change and how to deliver it to nonprofit and grassroots organizations. The movement grew as the Circuit Rider model became established as the movement began to develop a collective identity to mobilize new adherents. As the movement grew, the collective identity expanded to include new actors, who did not meet the original criteria for Circuit Riders. This created a collective identity problem for them as they attempted to balance the need to grow with the need to maintain an authentic definition of their movement. This chapter shows how social movements’ appeals to idealism enable mobilization while constraining future movement activities.
Keywords: Accounts, Worth, Technology, Social Movements, Mobilization, Resource Mobilization, Association, Foundations, Collective Identity
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