Social progressivism is the view that as time progresses, so should societal mores and morality. Social progressives believe that there is no inherent value in tradition. They argue that all social arrangements - including marriage, the family and gender roles - should not be set in stone; rather, they should be changed or updated whenever such a change is for the greater good of society or it benefits the people who wish to engage in those social arrangements. The opposite of social progressivism is called social conservatism.

Social progressives believe that some historical mores are wrong or dogmatic and that present knowledge gained from science and philosophy has disproved many traditional beliefs. In the past, social progressives advocated abolition of slavery and the right to vote for women. Today, social progressivism in the West generally supports same-sex marriage, birth control, and women's right to choose an abortion.

However, social progressives throughout the world advocate a wide variety of different social changes, and separate groups of social progressives may oppose each other because they support change in different directions. For instance, social progressives may be either left-wing or right-wing, depending on the kind of social mores they wish to change. A social progressive advocating feminism in the United States would be seen as left-wing, whereas a social progressive campaigning to outlaw recreational drugs in the Netherlands would be seen as right-wing.

The term social progressivism is not to be confused with social liberalism. "Social liberalism" does not refer to advocacy of social change, but rather to a specific kind of liberal ideology (see the relevant article for more information).