Personal civilisations change continually over the course of individuals’ lives. A circle civilisation, by contrast, does not continually change with every change in its members or social environment. Because it consists of sufficiently shared and socially operative civilisation elements, it displays a certain inertia in relation to pressures for change. Personal civilisations and circle civilisations may consequently change at different rates.
Every new perception, experience and interaction is processed through the already formed personal civilisation and may confirm and strengthen, weaken, cause a different interpretation of, modify or supplement existing civilisation elements. The scale and significance of such changes may be very small, but changes may also occur abruptly and be far-reaching.
There are several sources of such change. The first lies in individual variation. People differ in disposition, personality and experience. They may consequently develop conceptions or forms of conduct that differ from what is customary within their social circle. When others adopt such new elements, they may spread and ultimately become part of the circle civilisation.
Changes in a personal civilisation arising solely from individual life circumstances generally do not affect a circle civilisation. They may, however, create tension with the circle civilisations of which the individual forms part. Only when corresponding changes also occur in others or spread socially can they become socially operative.
A second source is contact and exchange between individuals and social circles. No social circle need be completely isolated. Trade, migration, education, travel, media, cooperation and other forms of contact acquaint people with civilisation elements from other circles. New conceptions, norms, values and forms of conduct that were absent or uncommon within the original circle may thereby become available.
The mere existence of alternative civilisation elements does not bring about change. They must be found sufficiently attractive, useful or credible to be incorporated into personal civilisations. Contact does, however, expand the available repertoire from which individuals and social circles may draw.
A third important source is technological change. New technologies alter not only technical possibilities but may also modify social relations. They may change existing forms of communication, production, cooperation, control, mobility or information provision, and thereby influence relations of dependency among individuals and social circles.
When social relations change, existing power relations, roles and behavioural expectations may change as well. Civilisation elements well suited to earlier circumstances may consequently become less functional, less credible or more difficult to maintain. New norms and behavioural repertoires may become attractive or necessary.
In this theory, technological change therefore does not directly and automatically alter ideas. The relevant link lies in changes in social relations and in the conduct that becomes possible or necessary within those new relations.
Besides individual variation, exchange and technology, other circumstances may also cause change. Demographic shifts, wars, epidemics, natural disasters, ecological changes and scarcity of resources may directly affect existing relations or indirectly create conditions in which old civilisation elements come under pressure.
Underlying changes in social relations may be a source of changes in personal and circle civilisations. Changes in mutual dependencies may alter power relations, roles, possibilities for action and behavioural expectations. Civilisation elements that were appropriate, self-evident or operative within earlier relations may thereby become less appropriate or less operative, while other elements gain significance.
Because personal civilisations, circle civilisations, social relations and institutions do not necessarily change at the same pace, new civilisation elements and changed social relations may coexist with older elements that remain dominant or institutionalised. Contradictions and tensions may consequently arise between what individuals think, expect and do and what is still regarded within the social circle as valid, appropriate or justified.
Institutions too may lag behind such changes. Roles, rules, powers and other institutionalised relations may persist while the personal and circle civilisations on which they rest change. Tensions and pressures for change may result.
Changes in personal civilisations do not occur independently of one another. Individuals live and act in social circles, are partly exposed to the same events and information, may trust the same sources and influence one another through interaction. Changes in personal civilisations may consequently reinforce one another and occur in the same direction and during the same period among larger numbers of individuals. A degree of synchronisation of civilisational change may thus arise. When socially shared circumstances cause corresponding changes among many people, these may affect circle civilisations after a delay, since a circle civilisation changes only when the new elements are sufficiently shared and become socially operative.