ABSTRACT
Collective behavior is analyzable by the same categories as conventional behavior. The two differ, to be sure. At one hypothetical extreme, collective behavior involves a collective redefinition of an unstructured situation; at the other extreme, conventional behavior is the working-out of established expectations. In spite of this difference, the two have an essential similarity. Both face exigencies imposed by social life. In many cases, for example, both must be legitimized by values; both involve an assessment of the situation in which they occur, and so on. Because of these common characteristics it is possible to use the same theoretical framework to analyze both conventional and collective behavior.
