Chapter 2

Culture

the way of thinking, the ways of acting, and the material objects that together form a people’s way of life

commonly (but wrongly) described as “human nature”

• no way of life is “natural” to human beings

Non-Material Culture

the ideas created by members of a society

• ranges from art to Zen

Material Culture

the physical things created by members of a society

• everything from armchairs to zippers

Culture Shock

personal disorientation when experiencing an unfamiliar way of life

• travelers often find themselves feeling uneasy in an unfamiliar culture

it is a two-way process

• travelers can experience and inflict culture shock

Symbol

anything that carries a particular meaning recognized by people who share a culture

• a word, whistle, wall of graffiti, flashing red light, raised fist, etc.

different cultures associate different meanings with them

• ex; winking can convey interest, understanding, or insult

symbolic meaning may vary within a single society

• ex: fur coats or Confederate flag

we become aware of symbols when they are used in an unconventional way

Language

a system of symbols that allows people to communicate with one another

• many alphabets and hundreds of languages

• rules for writing are different

key to cultural transmission

Cultural Transmission

the process by which one generation passes culture to the next

Charles Schwab & Co. (1990)

expanded business by launching a diversity initiative

• paid more attention to other racial/ethnic groups, particularly Asian Americans (1/3 of Asian American families earned more than $75,000 per year)

• they employed 300 people who spoke a range of different Asian languages, launched websites on Asian languages, and opened branches in many Asian neighborhoods

their success caused other companies to target ethnic/racial categories

Differences in Ways of Life Across the World

differ in terms of dress, food, music, family patterns, beliefs/morals, etc.

• some honor the elderly, other glorify youth

• some are peaceful, others are warlike

• many different religious beliefs

• what is polite/rude, beautiful/ugly, pleasant/repulsive

Animals and Culture

animals’ behaviors are guided by their natural instincts, causing them to act similar

primates have the capacity for limited culture

• they can use tools and teach simple skills to offspring

Values

culturally defined standards that people use to decide what is desirable, good, and beautiful

serve as broad guidelines for social living

sometimes, one value contradicts another

• ex: people in the U.S. believe in equal opportunity, but a substantial part of the population opposes the acceptance of homosexual marriages

Value Clusters

a group of related, mutually supportive values that combine to form a larger, coherent system

• ex: Americans value activity and work because we expects effort to lead to achievement, success, and material Comfort

Beliefs

specific thoughts or ideas that people hold to be true

• involves particular matters that individuals consider true/false

supported by values

10 Key Values of U.S. Culture

1. Equal Opportunity

our society should provide everyone with the chance to get ahead according to individual talents and efforts

2. Achievement & Success

our way of life encourages competition so that each person’s reward should reflect personal merit

3. Material Comfort

success in the United States = making money enjoying what it will buy

4. Activity & Work

popular U.S. heroes are “doers” who get the job done; values control over passiveness

5. Practicality & Efficiency

we value practical over theoretical, “doing” over “dreaming;” activity has value to the extent that it earns money

6. Progress

we believe that the present is better than the past, viewing “the very latest” as “the very best”

7. Science

we expect scientists to solve problems and improve the quality of our lives, and we tend to look down on emotion and intuition as sources of knowledge

8. Democracy & Free Enterprise

we believe that a just political system is based on free elections and an economy that responds to the choices of individual consumers

9. Freedom

we favor individual initiative over collective conformity; people should be free to pursue their personal goals

10. Racism & Group Superiority

despite strong ideas about equal opportunity and freedom, most people in the U.S. judge individuals according to gender, race, ethnicity, and social class

Norms

rules and expectations by which a society guides the behavior of its members

Proscriptive Norms

rules that state what we should NOT do

Prescriptive Norms

rules that state what we should do

Mores/Taboos

norms that are widely observed and have great moral significance

Folkways

norms for routine or casual interaction

draw a line between right and rude

Social Control

attempts by society to regulate people’s thoughts and behavior through norms

• norms make our dealings with others more orderly and predictable

• observing or breaking the rules of social life prompts a response from others

sanctions operate as a system of social control

• ex; an approving smile or a raised eyebrow

Shame

painful sense that others disapprove of our actions

only cultural creatures experience this feeling

Guilt

negative judgement we make of ourselves

only cultural creatures experience this feeling

Technology

knowledge that people use to make a way of life in their surroundings

Difference in Values Between High-Income Countries and Low-Income Countries

higher-income countries value individualism and self-expression

• people take survival for granted

• tend to be more secular/rational

• women have equality to men

lower-income countries value survival

• place a great deal of importance on physical safety and economic security

• tend to be more traditional

• men have more power than women

High Culture

cultural patterns that distinguish a society’s elite

Low/Popular Culture

cultural patterns that are widespread among a society’s population

Subculture

cultural patterns that set apart some segment of a society’s population

almost everyone participates in a subculture

can bring people together or set them apart

• variety to life or tension/violence

involve not just difference but hierarchy

• whatever we view as “dominant” or “mainstream” culture are patterns favored by powerful segments of the population

tend to view the lives of disadvantaged people as subculture

Multiculturalism

a perspective recognizing the cultural diversity of the United States and promoting equal standing of all cultural traditions

in the past, society downplayed diversity

• defined itself primarily in terms of well-off European (especially English) immigrants

• many cultures did not “melt” together as much as they turned into a hierarchy

• people of other backgrounds were advised to model themselves after “their betters” (Anglicization)

Eurocentrism

the dominance of European (specifically English) cultural practices\

• ex: many historians reported most events from an English (or European) perspective, downplaying the contributions of Native and African Americans

one controversial issue is language

• some believe that English should be a national language

• 68 million Americans (22%) speak another language at home

Afrocentrism

emphasizing and promoting African cultural patterns

necessary after centuries of minimizing/ignoring their cultural achievements

criticisms:

• encourages divisiveness rather than unity; look at things based on race or sex

• could harm minorities; seems to support racial segregation

Cultural Diversity in America

America is the most multicultural of all high-income countries

• distinctive accents of Boston, Deep South, Midwest

• home of numerous religions

• individuals who are like no one else

“Cultured”

a term used to describe someone who has experienced the arts, such as classical literature, music, dance, and painting

Counterculture

cultural patterns that strongly oppose those widely accepted within a society

1960’s “Hippie Movement”

• youth-orientated

• thought American culture was overly self-centered, competitive, and materialistic

• favored cooperative lifestyles

• capacity for personal growth (“expanded consciousness”) was prized over material possessions

Cultural Integration

the close relationships among various elements of a cultural system

Cultural Lag

the fact that some cultural elements change more quickly than others, disrupting a cultural system

Ethnocentrism

the practice of judging another culture by the standards of one’s own culture

people everywhere around the world use this practice

some ethnocentrism is okay

• creates emotional attachment to a way of life

a lot of ethnocentrism creates misunderstanding/conflict

• thinking one’s culture is “better” than another

what one society thinks of as right and natural, others think of as confusing and even immoral

Cultural Relativism

the practice of judging a culture by its own standards

can be difficult for travelers to adopt

• requires openness to unfamiliar values and the ability to put aside norms we have known all of our lives

Changes of Cultural Change

1. Invention:

• creating new cultural elements

• elements of material culture have had a tremendous impact on our way of life

• continues constantly

2. Discovery:

• recognizing and understanding more fully something already in existence

• ex: foods of another culture

3. Diffusion:

• spread of cultural traits from one to another

Structural-Functional Analysis of Culture

a strategy for meeting the needs of human

value directs our lives, give meaning to what we do, and bind people together

• help us understand unfamiliar ways of life

Social Conflict Analysis of Culture

stresses the link between culture and inequality

• cultural traits benefit some at the expense of others

• competitiveness and material success = our country’s capitalist economy

serves the interest of our nations’s wealthy elite

• teaches us to think that rich/powerful people work harder and longer than others