In thirteen succinct chapters, Buechler traces movement theories from the classical era of sociology to the most recent examples of transnational activism. He identifies the socio-historical context, central concepts, and guiding logic of diverse movement theories, with emphasis on: • Comparisons of Marx and Lenin; Weber and Michels; and Durkheim and LeBon • The Chicago School of the inter-war period • The political-sociological approaches of the 1950s • The varieties of strain and breakdown theories at the dawn of the 1960s • Major paradigm shifts caused by the cascade of 1960s social movements • Vivid examples of movements worldwide and coverage of all major theorists • Critiques, debates, and proposed syntheses dominating the turn of the 21st century • Recent trends (such as cyberactivism and transnational movements) and their theoretical implications