RQ: Why do social movements emerge and what is their impact on political systems? The aim of this review essay is to compare and contrast the major schools of thought specializing in social movements, selected comparative case studies, and relevant literature. The period in which my final essay will be set is the 1960s, a time when social movements became a permanent component of Western democracies. Regarding the theoretical framework, my starting point is the differentiation of two main approaches, the American and the European, regarding the literature of authors like Della Porta and Mario Diani. Next, I will focus on the four currently dominant perspectives and how they address why social movements emerge, as well as their impact on political systems. Finally, in an attempt to present empirical data to support this theory, I will use two case studies regarding current social movements and their impact on political systems. As with other sociological phenomena, there is no clear answer to what a social movement is, but researchers like Blumer have managed to create definitions that allow for future scientific research. As an example, I consider it to have many similarities with what, before delving further into the subject, my description of a social movement would be: Social movements can be seen as collective enterprises seeking to establish a new order of life. They are born in a state of restlessness and draw their driving force, on the one hand, from dissatisfaction with the current form of life and, on the other hand, from the wishes and hopes of a new system of life. The career of a social movement depicts the emergence of a new order of life. But even with this definition...... middle of paper ...... Social Movements Reader: Cases and Concepts. Malden, MA: Blackwell Pub., 2003. 1-3. Print.Lyman, Stanford M. “Collective Protest: A Critique of Resource Mobilization Theory.” Social movements: critiques, concepts, case studies. Dog Mills, Basingstoke: Macmillan, 1995. 137-68. Print.Mejias, Jorge. “Social networks and the Spanish 15-M movement.” Mapping ignorance. Np, June 18, 2013. Web. March 9, 2014.Porta, Donatella Della and Mario Diani. “The study of social movements.” Social movements: an introduction. Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2006. 1-21. Print.Raman, Omar H. “KONY2012: The Rise and Fall of an Online Social Movement.” OMAR H. RAHMAN Multiplatform journalist. Np, and Web. March 9, 2014.Tarrow, Sidney G. “From conflicts to social movements.” Power in motion: social movements and controversial politics. Second ed. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1998. 71-123. Print.