How did American society change during the 1960s and 1970s?
The social changes of the 1960s including the youth counter-culture and protest, the women's movement and the fight for equality, the impact of the Vietnam War on protest at home, and the broader changes in American attitudes and values.
A focused answer to American social change in the Eduqas period study, covering the youth counter-culture and protest, the women's movement, the impact of the Vietnam War on protest at home, and the shifting attitudes and values of the 1960s and 1970s.
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What this dot point is asking
This dot point covers the wave of social change in Eduqas's Component 2 period study. You need to explain the social changes of the 1960s, including the youth counter-culture and protest, the women's movement and the fight for equality, the impact of the Vietnam War on protest at home, and the broader changes in American attitudes and values. As a period study, focus on change over time as the conformist 1950s gave way to the rebellious 1960s and 1970s.
The youth counter-culture
The women's movement
The Vietnam War and protest at home
Changing attitudes and values
Try this
Q1. What was The Feminine Mystique, and why did it matter? [Knowledge recall]
- Cue. Betty Friedan's 1963 book that named women's frustration with limited domestic roles and helped launch the women's movement and organisations such as NOW.
Q2. Explain why the Vietnam War damaged trust in the US government. [Short explanation]
- Cue. Rising casualties, an unwinnable war, the unpopular draft and televised brutality made many feel the government had misled them, fuelling mass protest and a wider questioning of authority.
Exam-style practice questions
Practice questions written in the style of WJEC Eduqas exam questions on this dot point, with worked answer explainers. The year tag is the paper they imitate, not the source.
Eduqas C100 20184 marksDescribe two features of the youth counter-culture of the 1960s.Show worked answer →
The period-study describe question (4 marks, AO1). Reward two distinct, developed features, each with one supporting detail.
Feature one. Many young people (the "hippies") rejected mainstream values, embracing peace, free love, communal living and experimentation with drugs, summed up in the slogan "make love, not war".
Feature two. The counter-culture was tied to new music and mass gatherings, such as the Woodstock festival of 1969, and to opposition to the Vietnam War and the older generation's values.
Top marks. Two separate features, each developed with precise detail.
Eduqas C100 20218 marksExplain why a women's movement developed in the USA in the 1960s.Show worked answer →
The period-study "explain why" question (8 marks, AO1 and AO2). Reward a developed analysis of two or three reasons, each with precise support.
Reason one. Despite the affluence of the 1950s, women faced inequality: lower pay, limited career opportunities and pressure to be housewives, which growing numbers came to resent.
Reason two. Influential ideas spread, especially Betty Friedan's book The Feminine Mystique (1963), which named women's frustration and helped launch organisations such as NOW (1966) to campaign for equal rights.
Reason three. The example of the civil rights movement showed how organised protest could win change, inspiring women to campaign for equality in law, work and society.
Top band. Connect each reason explicitly to why the movement arose, and finish with the most important factor.
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Sources & how we know this
- WJEC Eduqas GCSE History (C100) specification — WJEC Eduqas (2016)